


The Making of a Ranger

by Sarigar31



Series: The Making of a Ranger [1]
Category: World of Warcraft
Genre: Before the First War, F/M, First Impressions, Getting to Know Each Other, pre-Arthas
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-17
Updated: 2020-08-09
Packaged: 2021-03-01 19:15:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 24
Words: 59,012
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23692210
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sarigar31/pseuds/Sarigar31
Summary: This covers the beginnings of the relationship between Sylvanas and Nathanos starting with his first days in training and going at least up to his initiation into the Farstriders.
Relationships: Lor'themar Theron/Sylvanas Windrunner, Nathanos Marris /Sylvanas Windrunner
Series: The Making of a Ranger [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1881877
Comments: 108
Kudos: 78





	1. Rough Beginnings

Sylvanas Windrunner, Ranger-General of Silvermoon had faced countless opponents in her lifetime. Amani Trolls fell to her arrows. Giant spiders, ferocious jungle cats, and other wild beasts were easily dispatched. Though she had struggled at times, she managed to conquer them alone and with the help of those in her command. She knew how to get others to do what she needed done. With their help, there was no task that had eluded her. Until she was given the task of training the human volunteers from Lordaeron.

In an effort to cement an alliance between the two kingdoms and races, volunteers from Lordaeron would be trained in the fighting skills of the Farstriders of Quel’Thalas. Unfortunately these volunteers were hopeless and would be lucky to learn even the simplest techniques. Most of them would be able to learn to stick the pointy end in their enemy, though there were some who wouldn’t even learn that. Still, political expediency needed to be appeased, and her Farstriders would have to do their best with the humans that Lordaeron sent. Having some fighting force in the kingdom to the south was tactically sound, and these humans would soften any enemies foolish enough to come for Quel’Thalas through Lordaeron. Hopefully.

Looking at them, Sylvanas judged that these volunteers were little more than children. Old enough by human standards to leave their homes but still too young to have experienced much of life. Maybe they were older. Sylvanas had difficulty judging how old humans were just by looking at them; humans aged so quickly compared to elves. She watched closely as the students carefully nocked their arrows, drew their bows, then loosed the arrows at the targets. Some managed to hit the targets. That was an improvement over last week. She had quickly learned to not walk behind the targets when the humans were practicing, a precaution she did not need to take when her Farstriders were practicing.

Swoosh…swoosh…thunk (“Yay!”) …swoosh…thunk…

The sounds of arrows flying through the air and mostly missing was disheartening, though she knew that the humans were trying their best. It wasn’t their fault they weren’t raised with a bow in their hand from childhood. Most of the recruits were the children of farmers and tradesmen who came seeking adventure and an escape from the tedious lives they had known. Most would return to their boring lives and become militia – warriors only when needed. Some would return to Lordaeron and join the guard. Few would find the exciting life they came for.

Thunk…thunk…thunk…thunk…

Sylvanas stopped and looked towards the sound of arrows hitting their mark, expecting to find a Ranger showing a recruit how to shoot. Instead she saw a human who knew how to shoot a bow. He was a little taller than she was, with auburn colored hair. He looked slightly older than the others and was intent on the task at hand. She watched as he sent three more arrows into the target. While he didn’t hit the bullseye, he did manage to hit the target, which was an improvement over his fellow humans. His form left a lot to be desired, though.

Lor’Themar Theron joined Sylvanas and examined the human with her.

“This lot from Lordaeron isn’t very promising,” he said.

“You can’t expect farmers and potters to be very proficient in weapons. I’d bet the closest they’ve come to holding a weapon in their hands is using a crude sling to hunt small game with.” Her reply sounded like she was grasping for any excuse to defend the humans, and she didn’t even convince herself of its plausibility. “This one doesn’t seem too bad with a bow, though.”

“Marris,” Lor’themar said as if he had swallowed a lemon.

Sylvanas looked at him and raised an eyebrow at his tone. “What’s wrong with him? His form is bad, but at least he’s hitting the target.”

“It’s not his bow skills that are bad. He’s an ass, and I’m giving asses a bad name calling him that. He just barely gives the Farstriders respect, but he gives it grudgingly. Very grudgingly. His fellow humans…well let’s just say he thinks they are beneath him. I watched him call a young lad an imbecile when the boy had trouble stringing his bow.”

“We’ll have to put up with him for at least one more week. That’s part of our agreement with Lordaeron. After that, we can send him back to his home.”

Lor’themar frowned, thinking. “He does show promise with a bow, and he mostly keeps to himself, so he isn’t trying to cause trouble. He does take his training seriously and is working during his off hours on what we’ve taught him. Let’s see how he handles the hand to hand training before making any decisions.”

“That sounds like a good idea. Let me know by week’s end. I’m having dinner with Kael’thas to discuss the recruits and their future training with us.”

The pair continued walking, reviewing the humans.

“You’ve been seeing Kael a lot recently,” Lor’themar remarked. “Are you trying to make me jealous?”

Sylvanas laughed. “I spent last night with you. Wasn’t that enough?”

“Mmmm…I can’t spend enough time with you. You know that.”

He reached out and gave her hand a squeeze, which she returned. They looked at each other and smiled, then returned to inspecting the humans. Both signed heavily as they noted the large number of arrows littering the grass behind the archery targets.

The training was going to be rough.


	2. Trouble

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Training continues. Sylvanas wants to test Nathanos, but an incident gets blown out of proportion and there's trouble.

At midday the training was halted for lunch. The trainees split up into groups of three or four to share stories about their training or their previous lives or whatever caught their fancy. Sylvanas noticed that…what was his name? Harris?…Karras?...Marris! That was it. Marris…was sitting alone, watching the others human and elves alike. He looked like he was studying them, getting to know them by how they moved and acted. Curious.

His gaze eventually met hers, their eyes locking briefly. Sylvanas got a good look at his face. Not overly handsome, but not bad looking -- for a human. There was something there that caught her eye, but she wasn’t like her sisters. She liked long ears and eyebrows and the men who had them. Right now, it was Lor’themar she liked, although she had had no shortage of Quel’dorei men who were interested in her and vice versa. Someday she would settle down with one of them (maybe even Lor’themar.)

As the human stared at her, a woman walked up to him and started talking to him. He tore his gaze away from the Ranger General to pay attention to the newcomer. She looked like she was smitten, and Sylvanas smirked. She watched as Marris fidgeted while the woman sat next to him, attempting to engage him in conversation. He looked uncomfortable but was polite enough to listen (or at least pretend to listen) while she talked. Sylvanas grinned and went to find Lor’themar, missing the contemplative look the human gave her as she walked away.

The afternoon was devoted to teaching hand to hand combat. The humans fared somewhat better at this, although they had none of the grace of the Quel’dorei. The men especially were fond of using wild roundhouse punches instead of the quicker jabs the elves used. Wrestling was easier for them as their size generally worked to their advantage. Once shown the correct moves, they did well. Perhaps there was hope for them after all.

Sylvanas walked on, watching the sparring until she reached Marris. She had arranged to have Lor’themar train him this afternoon to see just how well the human could fight her best fighter. Both men had discarded their shirts, though she couldn’t tell how long ago that had been. She gazed approvingly at Lor’themar’s torso; His smooth chest was covered in sweat, well-muscled yet lean like elves were. She glanced at his opponent. The human was sweaty and well-muscled as well. That was where the similarity ended. He was broad shouldered and stocky, like many humans were. His chest was also hairy. She had seen humans with more hair on their bodies (even their backs!) than Marris had, but there was a decent covering on his chest. How her sisters dealt with human hairiness she had no idea.

Marris attempted to grapple Lor’themar and got a good grip until the Farstrider shifted, broke his grip and threw him to the ground, then said “Hold.” From the dirt on the trainee, this had been a common occurrence. Marris growled at his failure and got back up. Both men took their stances again, and, when the elf gave the signal, began wrestling again. Marris did well, but once again was thrown to the ground. When he got back up, the two men talked about technique while catching their breath and drinking some water. Lor’themar showed Marris the moves again in slow motion; the human then went through the motions slowly several times.

They moved back to the center of the sparring ring and took up their positions. Lor’themar gave the signal and the two men started wrestling again. Marris did much better this time, breaking holds and moving Lor’themar around a bit. The pair broke apart and Lor’themar noticed Sylvanas for the first time. He broke his stance and started walking over to her, opening his mouth to say something. He never got the chance to say anything; the breath was forced out of his lungs by a forceful blow from behind followed by the force of the ground hitting him as he was slammed down.

The elf rolled over, covered in dirt with a furious snarl on his face. “What are you doing? Didn’t you see I had turned my back on you to address the Ranger-general?”

The training grounds grew silent; only the sound of Sylvanas chuckling could be heard as elf and human alike turned to see what was happening. Marris walked over and extended a hand to help the elf up. Lor’themar slapped the hand away and clambered up on his own.

“You didn’t say hold, Ranger-Lord. On day one we were told to continue until hold was called. I merely did what I was told.”

“I’ll see you returned to whatever dirt hole you crawled out of, human.”

Lor’themar stalked off, elf and human alike diving out of his way. Sylvanas sighed, assigned another Farstrider to continue Marris’ training, picked up her lover’s shirt, then followed him to their room at the Farstrider Conclave.

“I want him out of here!”

“Stop being an ass. He did what you instructed him to do,” she said as she handed him his shirt.

“You saw what he did! He attacked me while my guard was down!”

“I saw you turn your back to him while in combat. You never called a hold. If I ever see you do that in actual combat, I’ll have your hide…assuming you survive.”

“He enjoyed taking advantage of me. You could see it in his eyes.”

“I saw no such thing, and up until then you were taking a lot of pleasure throwing him around. You were using advanced moves on him to ensure he lost every bout.”

“You told me –”

“I told you to test him and to see how well he learned what you taught him. From what I saw, he was extremely attentive and learned what you were teaching him. Had you stayed with what you were teaching him, he would have beaten you a few times. Be honest, you underestimated him.”

“He’s trouble. Thinks he’s better than the others.”

Sylvanas smiled at him kindly. “He is better than the other humans here, but he also shows respect to the Farstriders and to those who are putting the effort into learning what’s being taught.”

Lor’themar stared at her for a moment, then turned and walked to stare out the window. “I still don’t like him. He’s trouble.”

She frowned for a moment, then walked up behind him, wrapped her arms around him and pressed her body against his bare back. She held him tightly savoring the feel of his muscles and warmth. After a few moments, she loosened her hold so he could turn around and return the embrace. She looked into his eyes and smiled at him.

“Don’t worry about Marris. I’ll have someone else train him. He’ll prove himself one way or another.”

Lor’themar looked down at her, losing himself in her eyes. He couldn’t refuse her and not just because she was his superior. He lifted one hand and traced around one of her ears with one long finger, continuing down along the muscle in her neck. She closed her eyes and smiled.

As his hands continued moving down her body, he said “He’ll be out by the end of the week.”

She chuckled and replied “Then we’ll be rid of him. For now, there are better things for you to focus on. Me, for starters.”

“As you command,” he whispered, and spent the rest of the day focusing on his lover.


	3. A Choice of Weapons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sylvanas and Nathanos have a discussion about weapon choices

The week ended and a few of the humans left: some of their own accord and some sent packing by the Farstriders. Marris managed to avoid being cut. He was doing quite well, although most of the trainees didn’t like him. He was abrasive, often calling them imbeciles, morons, and idiots when they failed to perform the tasks assigned to them. What they didn’t see was how harsh he was on himself when he made mistakes. He held himself to a higher standard and was putting the effort above and beyond what was expected by others.

The training had moved from unarmed combat to the beginnings of swordplay. The trainees had learned which end to hold and were learning the guards and attacks. Even though they were using wooden wasters they weren’t allowed to practice against each other. There were plenty of training dummies available that got plenty of use during the day as eager young humans finally got to practice with something other than the sticks they had used in childhood.

The day had been long, the training hard, and many arms were sore from sword play at the end of the day. The trainees wearily ate their dinners, and many collapsed into their tents afterward. Sylvanas enjoyed the relative quiet of the evenings after the busy days. As she strolled around the grounds, she stopped and offered words of encouragement to the youngsters. They were doing better, although their archery skills still left something to be desired. The young humans were being trained hard; they were being taught skills that had taken the elves their entire childhood to learn.

She stopped suddenly as her ears picked up the sound of someone hitting a training dummy. She frowned, then headed toward the sound with an idea of who would be there. Sure enough, Marris was there attacking the dummies with a hand axe instead of the training waster. He was using the sword forms that were being taught – first ward, second ward, the ox, the boar, the plow and he was going slowly to teach his muscles how to do them right. They weren’t right for the weapon, though. Some of the forms did transfer over but not all of them.

“Marris, what are you doing?”

He turned and regarded the Ranger-General for a moment, then replied “Practicing.”

“I see that,” she said flatly. “Why aren’t you using a waster? You’re supposed to be using a waster.”

“I don’t see the point.”

Sylvanas blinked. “What?”

“I don’t see the point in learning the sword.”

“Explain yourself,” she ordered, beginning to see why Lor’themar didn’t like him. He was rude and too blunt for his own good.

“I suppose it’s not a problem for those who are going to join an army that will provide weapons for them, but most of us aren’t going to do that. Most of us are going to go back to our farms and families to be a local defense in times of need. You might have a nice heirloom sword you can use, but I have no such thing.”

“You can buy – “

He cut her off. “I don’t have the coin to buy a new sword. I’ll have to use what I have on hand: a pitchfork, a flail, a staff, an axe. Those are my “weapons.” I can make a shield or buckler if need be for little to no cost. Bows and arrows are available for hunting.”

“But –”

“You don’t understand. I’m a farmer. The food I grow I sell so I can buy it back from the baker or butcher at a higher cost. Farming is hard work, and everything has to have a daily use. A pitchfork is used to move hay to feed the livestock. A flail is used to separate the wheat from the chaff. A staff is easily found and can be used for a multitude of uses. Tell me, when you go out ranging, do you use your sword to chop wood?”

“Of course not.”

“No. You use an axe. You’re carrying extra equipment, which is extra weight. If you used an axe to fight with, you would be a pound or two lighter. That could make all the difference between life and death.”

Sylvanas thought about this for a minute. Marris was right. She remembered the many campaigns when she had had to carry all of her own equipment. She remembered the weight slowing her down. Still, a sword was lighter than an axe and balanced better for fighting. Battle was far different than farming, and a lot of farm implements weren’t suited for forest combat. Longer weapons tended to get caught in branches and undergrowth.

“The others seem to enjoy learning the sword.”

“They’re young. Many of them see themselves as adventurers, slaying monsters and saving towns. They’ve grown up on the stories of heroes slaying dragons and righting wrongs with their magical swords. While I’m not much older, I am older and do have a few more worldly experiences. In time they’ll learn.”

What events in his life made him so dour Sylvanas thought to herself? He admitted that he wasn’t much older than the others, yet he talked as if he was the same age as their fathers. Here he was claiming the others would have their dreams crushed by life when he himself should still be trying to make those same dreams come true.

“Why are you here? You don’t have dreams of being a hero. You said it yourself: you’re a farmer. Why come here and put yourself through all of this just to return to your farm?”

“I am here to learn to fight. I live a long way from Capitol City and there is a lot of distance between farms. If we were attacked help wouldn’t get to us in time. As it is, roving bands of gnolls attack and steal our livestock and crops. I have no fantasies about stopping an army by myself, but I can take what I learn here and teach it to those at home, and together we can slow down intruders.”

“Who is tending your farm while you are here?”

“My parents still live and tend the farm, we have a few farmhands. My uncle and his wife have a farm nearby as well. They can take care of things without me.”

There was a pause as Sylvanas absorbed all that had been said. “I never thought about the things you brought up.”

“You’ve never had to.”

“You’ve given me a lot to think about. For now, stick to learning the sword. There are different techniques used with axes, and I don’t want you learning to use sword forms with an axe.”

“Will you eventually be teaching us how to use an axe?”

“Perhaps. Time is limited and teaching even a couple of different weapons would take too much time. As it is, we’re teaching archery, unarmed combat and swords.”

“It seems to me that it would be better to teach weapons that would actually be used than swords that will sit rusting in a corner when we return home.”

“You would have me bring in farming tools for them to fight with?” Sylvanas replied sharply. He was beginning to get on her nerves.

“Of course not! Why not let the trainees pick their weapons from the start? Most of them will choose the sword, but different people like different weapons. I’ve seen Farstriders carrying axes, maces, pole arms, spears, swords, and even great swords.”

Damn this man! He was right and made some good arguments. Her own beloved used a great sword. The logistics of coming up with enough practice weapons and instructors were headache inducing, though. What would happen when a volunteer decided they didn’t like the weapon they chose? They would have to start at the beginning with a new weapon while the students already learning that weapon would be far ahead. It would be a nightmare. Sylvanas closed her eyes and sighed. There were details that he couldn’t even think of that would be problems in the implementation of such a thing.

“Let me discuss it with my instructors.”

“May I train with someone who will teach me to use an axe?”

“For now, learn the sword. It doesn’t hurt to know how to use one, even if you never wield one ever again.”

“As you command,” he replied without any visible emotion.

“Go get some rest. I’ll see you tomorrow, Marris,” she said as she began to walk back to the Enclave.

“Until tomorrow, Windrunner.”

Her eyes widened in surprise at the impudence of the man using her last name like that, but she kept walking. Truly, the man was impossible.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the first real interaction between Sylvanas and Nathanos. He holds people to a high standard that most don't meet. He holds himself to a higher standard, though, and drives himself hard to meet that. We will eventually see what drove him to learn how to fight, but for now you get just a brief glimpse. I hope you are enjoying the tale so far.


	4. The Beginnings of a Plan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nathanos' idea is discussed. Sylvanas gets some information about Nathanos and gets an idea. Lor'themar is whiny again.

Sylvanas brought up the idea of teaching other weapon styles the next morning. Lor’themar didn’t like the idea, but it was hard to tell if that was because it was a bad idea or because it came from Marris. He brought up the fact that these were young humans who hadn’t been brought up around weapons and wouldn’t know if they preferred one weapon over another. They hadn’t fought with weapons in combat and didn’t know the quirks of each weapon. They weren’t just facts they were good facts but were easily countered. Letting the humans train with the weapons would give them a feel for the weapons. The problem was available time.

Her rangers had been training far longer than these humans had been alive. Hell, they had been training longer than the humans’ parents had been alive. They were practically born with a bow in their hands and raised around weapons of all types. They had had a long time to figure out what weapons they liked to use. Expecting the humans to figure it out in one summer was asking a lot from them.

The others were of mixed opinions about the idea. They saw the benefits of allowing the humans to explore with the weapons and finding the weapon that fit them, but they also realized that they didn’t have a lot of time to cater to each trainee. The discussion went back and forth with many ideas being put forth and then torn apart. Tempers flared and then calmed again. It was agreed that the humans were idiots that could barely grasp what they were being taught and then everyone agreed that the humans were capable of learning so much more.

The discussion turned to just exactly what the elves were supposed to be teaching the humans. Lordaeron had an army. If the humans wanted to learn to be soldiers, they could join the human army and learn how to use weapons there. The Farstriders were different. They fought in the forests of Quel’thalas. They traveled fast, far, and quietly. They used the land itself as a weapon, utilizing rivers and hills to their tactical advantage, and trees and rocks as cover. The fighting styles were completely different and sometimes used different weapons.

At the end of the discussion, it was agreed that they would continue to teach the humans Farstrider tactics. They also agreed to continue teaching swordplay, but several of the Farstriders would be available to teach other weapon forms if the humans wanted to spend extra time at the end of the day or during down time if they wanted. Sylvanas was glad things were worked out, and even Lor’themar was happy at the compromise. She knew Marris would be pleased to be able to learn to use his axe for something other than chopping wood. That reminded her of something she wanted to discuss with his trainers.

“Leth’rial, Tyren. A moment, if you please.”

Both rangers stopped and turned towards the Ranger-General. She pulled them aside, away from the others. “I want to discuss our troublemaker, Marris. It was his insistence on using axes that prompted this morning’s discussion. I had a discussion with him last night and got the impression that he’s difficult to work with. What is your opinion”

Both rangers looked at each other uncomfortably then back to Sylvanas.

“He can be difficult, but in a good way, mostly,” Leth’rial said. “He’s not _trying_ to cause trouble, but he wants to know why things are done the way they are. He’s constantly suggesting other ways of doing the moves we are teaching.”

“He’s always trying to correct the others when they do something wrong but he’s terribly condescending when he does it.” Tyren added. “I know he’s trying to help, but the others resent him when he does it.”

“I see. Is he worth keeping around, or should we cut our losses with him?”

“He’s worth keeping although I would suggest maybe one-on-one training would be best. He’s always spending extra time practicing what we teach so he’s advancing faster than the others.” Tyren looked as if he was betraying a secret. “The others hate him for it They feel he’s trying to curry favor with us. I don’t believe that, though. Something is driving him hard, and he doesn’t strike me as the political type.”

“He hates getting something wrong,” Leth’riel commented. “I’ve seen him curse himself out worse than he does to others when he makes a mistake. Then he practices the technique until he wears himself out. He isn’t inherently better than the others. He works his ass off to learn what we’re teaching him while the others are off flirting or getting drunk.”

“I realize we haven’t begun to teach them tactics, but does he seem like the type who could be a leader and understand tactics?”

Both rangers furrowed their brows in concentration. There was a moment of silence as the two thought about the question. Tyren answered first. “Maybe. He must learn to not be condescending, and to build people up, not tear them down. He understands a lot, so tactics might not be a problem for him.”

Sylvanas thanked them for the information and sent them out to train the humans. They had given her a lot to think about.

“ _So, he_ is _difficult to work with,”_ she mused. _“Why is he pushing himself so hard? Why does he push the others so hard as well? What if he was given different training? Most of these humans were going to be militia – guerilla fighters that would supplement the Lordaeron army. Marris could become their leader…”_

A plan was beginning to form in her mind, but first she needed to announce the new weapon training availability to the volunteers. She looked up and saw Lor’themar glaring at her.

“What is _your_ problem, love?”

“Why are you so interested in that human?”

Sylvanas grinned coyly. ”Are you jealous?”

“Of… _that_? Of course not. He’s trouble plain and simple. Look at this morning’s…discussion. We had a plan for training these humans and he comes along and disrupts it.”

“Oh, don’t be silly. _I_ was the one who brought it up. I could have just ignored the matter completely. Some of these humans will never hold a sword once they leave here. They’ve used farming tools their entire lives and are familiar with those. There are martial versions of many of those tools; many weapons were developed from farm tools. I think it would be a good idea to train these humans to use the tools they have.”

“So you argued earlier.”

“And the others agreed. We aren’t changing the plans we made too much, and those willing to give the extra training can work it in around their patrols. The humans still have a couple of weeks of weapons training left before we break them into squads and start teaching them how to move through woods and then the war games. Having them train with other weapons will help them focus on the training and will help condition them further. What is _really_ bothering you?”

“I don’t like him. There’s something about him that just…disturbs me. A kind of foreboding, if you will.”

Sylvanas sighed. “You’re better than that. Marris is different than the others. He’s older than his age. I don’t know if something happened to him to cause that or if his upbringing is the reason why. He thinks things through unlike the other humans. I will admit there is something about him that fascinates me.”

“I think it runs in the family,” Lor’themar said jokingly.

“You know I like Sin’Dorei. One in particular.”

“Who is he? I’ll fight him for your favor!”

Sylvanas laughed. “That is something I’d like to see. You’ll have to torture me to get his name, though.”

“Mmmmmm. I think I know what I’ll be doing tonight. I must know who my competitor is. It might take all night. We probably won’t get much sleep.”

“Promises, promises. I’ll take a nap later today to make sure I’m well rested so I can resist. Until tonight, then,” she said as she pulled him closer for a kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long. This chapter just didn't feel right, but it also felt necessary, so I added a bit to it.


	5. Putting the Plan in Motion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sylvanas makes a proposition to Nathanos that changes his life.

The next couple of weeks went as smoothly as could be expected. The humans were picking up swordplay and by now definitely knew to stick the training dummies with the pointy end. A few were ready to start using actual swords against the training dummies to get a feel for the real thing, and all of them had moved onto sparring with each other so they could practice using blocks against attacks.

Several of the recruits had taken the elves up on learning different weapons, including Marris. Some focused on learning how to use knives, a couple took up spears. Marris found someone to train him in his beloved axe. Sylvanas had to admit he seemed more comfortable using the axe. Perhaps the idea of forcing everyone to learn to use a sword was wrong.

She’d never admit that openly, though.

The familiar sound of someone hitting the training dummies after dinner led her to Marris. She watched him for a few minutes as he slowly went through the motions of the axe strikes he had been learning. He was getting good. His sword work was adequate but it wasn’t this good despite all the training he had been receiving.

“Marris, I need to speak with you.”

He finished the moves he was making, then turned to face her. “What is it, Windrunner?”

“First off, I am the Ranger-General of the Farstriders. Since you are training with us, you will use my title in front of others or my first name in private. Understood?”

“As you wish. I figured using last names was an elven custom since you are always using my last name when talking to me.”

Sylvanas was flustered for a moment. “I – I don’t think I know your first name.”

“Nathanos.”

“Thank you. I’ll call you that from now on. That will be important from now on. Your training with the others is over. I—”

“What! Why? I’ve done all that was asked of me –”

“If you would let me finish,” Sylvanas interrupted. “As I was saying, you won’t be training with the others for a while. You will be training with me personally.”

Nathanos stared at her. “With… _you_? Why?”

“You have a drive and purpose the others don’t. They are slowing you down. I want to teach you more advanced techniques and tactics. Plus, you don’t do well with others.”

Nathanos grunted in agreement. He didn’t like people and he didn’t care. “So… how _exactly_ does this work?”

“There is a room in the Farstrider Enclave that you will move into. You will be my steward most of the day.”

“So you gain a lackey,” he interrupted. “All this just to get me away from the others. Why not just send me home?”

“There is more to this than just being a “lackey.” I will teach you fighting techniques beyond what you’ve learned: fighting strategies, advanced strikes, combining all of what you’ve learned so far. I will also teach you how to plan battles and prepare for war in times of peace. There will be opportunities to learn all the time, if you have the wit to see them and learn.”

He paused. “You intend to make me a ranger?”

“No. Rangers are elves and only elves. I want to make sure you can go back to your home and be able to lead your people when trouble rears its head. The rest of the humans will be able to defend themselves if needed, but you will be able to see trouble brewing when all seems peaceful.”

Sylvanas could see Nathanos doing the calculations in his head.

“That is a lot. What do you get out of all of this?”

“Personal satisfaction. Aside from small troll attacks, things are quiet right now. I need something to do besides listen to bureaucrats.”

He was pretty sure she was hiding something but decided to let it go for the time being.

“Very well. When do I start?”

“Right now. Gather your things and meet me at the Enclave in fifteen minutes.”

Nathanos grumbled and sprinted back to his tent. It was a fifteen-minute trip straight from the training dummies to the Enclave. He had to run to the tents, gather his meager belongings, and then get to the Enclave. The other trainees looked at him oddly as he ran into the camp. His tent mate asked what was happening but got no response. There wasn’t time for conversation. Nathanos threw his clothing haphazardly into the knapsack he originally brought them in along with the few other possessions he had, rolled up his bedroll and ran for the Enclave as if his life depended on it.

He slid to a stop at the bottom of the steps breathing heavily. A trickle of sweat rolled down his face narrowly missing his eye. He looked around but didn’t see the Ranger-General.

“ _What am I getting myself into,”_ he wondered. “ _I’m only here to learn enough to defend the farm and my family. Here I am running like a fool at the bidding of this elf.”_

Several of the Farstriders stared at him curiously. He just glared back at them and waited. He wasn’t sure just how long it had been. Maybe he had managed to get there early. It was hard to tell.

“Marris! What do you think you’re doing here with all of that… _stuff_?”

Nathanos turned to see who was asking. Lor’themar Theron. That fool who was too full of himself and got his ego bruised when he turned his back during a sparring match. If rumors were true, he was also Windrunner’s lover.

“ _If he’s the sort of man she likes…”_ Nathanos mused as he shook his head.

“I’m here at the Ranger-General’s command.”

“Why? And why do you have your things? The human camp is that way. The Enclave is for elves.”

“Nathanos will be my steward while I train him personally,” answered Sylvanas.

Nathanos started; he hadn’t heard or seen her approach.

Lor’themar looked like he had eaten a whole lemon. “Why? When did you make _that_ decision?”

Sylvanas raised an eyebrow. “We will discuss this in private. It is _my_ decision and you don’t have any say in it. I’ll be up shortly.”

Lor’themar stormed off muttering under his breath. Nathanos watched him go then turned his attention to the Ranger-General. She watched Lor’themar with a pained look on her face then shook herself, took a calming breath, and turned to her new steward. Without saying a word she started into the Enclave leaving Nathanos to hurriedly pick up his belongings and scramble after her. She was silent as they walked to a small room.

The room was sparsely furnished by elven standards though it seemed palatial to him. There was a bed, a nightstand, a wardrobe, a desk, some bookshelves with a few books, and a table and a couple of chairs. There was a smaller room attached that appeared to have a large tub. It appeared that he would have the room to himself. He put his bedroll on the bed and placed his knapsack on the table, then turned to look at Sylvanas, who had remained silent.

“This is to be your room. My quarters are further upstairs. You will learn how to get from here to there, as well as to my office. Now, do you know how to read and write?”

“I can read and write a little. Enough to create a bill of sale. Reading doesn’t get a field plowed or livestock fed.”

“You will learn to read and write. Common as well as Thalassian.”

“I can’t even speak Thalassian.”

“You will in time. I want you to attend me when I receive reports from the field. Many of those are in Thalassian, so you will need to know the language. You will study the history of both our peoples. Military tactics are discussed in the histories and you will need to learn these. We will work on tactics: both individual and group tactics. I will put you in charge of a training squad eventually and you need to know how to give them orders.”

“That sounds like a lot.”

“It is, and that’s just the beginning. I will be training you to shoot a bow as well as any Farstrider –”

 _“_ Even you?”

Sylvanas laughed. “You should be so lucky. As I was saying, you will learn to shoot a bow and use not just one weapon, but two at once. You will be busy from before dawn until after sunset. You will return to this room exhausted with much yet to do every day. Do you think you are up to the task?”

“It’s a lot to ask of a simple farmer…”

“That isn’t an answer. You are more than just a simple farmer whether you realize it or not.”

“I will do it.”

“Good. Tomorrow will come early. I suggest you get your gear stowed away and get to bed soon. Have you eaten yet?”

“Yes, I have. I ate with the others.”

“Good. I will have someone wake you in the morning and bring you breakfast.”

She looked him up and down quickly. His rustic workman’s shirt had old dirt stains from his days tending crops and spots soaked with sweat. His brown pants had been patched several times, and his rough leather boots looked worn. There was a distinctive odor to him as well.

“Are these the only clothes you have? Do you have anything better to wear?”

“I do have a change of clothes, but they’re not much better. I don’t have the spare coin or use for fancy clothes. I figured this would be good enough for learning to fight.”

“I’ll send a tailor to you tomorrow to get measurements. In the meantime, wear your other clothes and have those washed. Oh, and be sure to wash yourself as well. There is a tub in the next room with soap. Use it liberally. Good night.”

Nathanos mumbled a good night to her and watched as she left. He quickly unpacked his possessions and inspected the room more closely. The bed seemed soft for his tastes, but it would do. The books on the shelves were beyond his reading level and looked to be in Thalassian. The wardrobe was empty but that would change.

 _“She’s going to dress me up just like an elf. I’m going to look ridiculous in all that frippery,”_ he mused.

The other room had a large tub with a strange series of pipes and knobs. He turned one of the knobs and water came gushing out into the tub, then down a hole in the bottom of the tub. Looking under the tub he saw a pipe leading down into the floor.

“ _Huh. That pipe takes the water out to somewhere else. Clever.”_

Rising back to the faucet, he realized the water was hot. The knob he turned had a red circle on it while the other knob had a blue circle. He turned that one, and the water cooled off to a temperature he could tolerate. He quickly found a plug for the drain and inserted it to let the tub fill. As the tub filled, he undressed, found soap and a cloth to wash with, and climbed in. The warm water felt wonderful to his sore muscles. He wet the flowery smelling soap and washed himself, enjoying the feel of the hot water. The tub was big enough for him to slide down and submerge himself so he could wash his hair.

When he finished cleaning himself, he sat there enjoying the feel of the hot water. He was amazed at the ingenuity of the elves. At home he would have had to heat the water over the fire, then pour it into the wash basin. A tub this size would have taken hours to fill and would have been cold by the time it was finished, so he only used a wash basin and a washcloth to clean himself. A large cup allowed him to pour water over his head so he could wash his hair. This was a luxury that the elves took for granted! Nathanos felt his eyes grow heavy and allowed himself to relax for a moment, only to awaken with a start.

Wearily he rose from the tub and pulled the plug to allow the now lukewarm and very dirty water to drain. He dried himself off, wrapped the towel around his waist, walked over to the washstand and looked in the mirror. He needed a shave, but he liked the look of the beard that was growing in. “ _She’ll probably make me shave it off,”_ he thought, but decided to leave it until then. Turning, he grabbed the lamp and returned to the main room, placed the it on the nightstand, climbed into his bed savoring the feel of the soft linen sheets on his bare skin, and blew out the flame of the lamp.

He was asleep minutes later.


	6. Arguments

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Quel'dorei drama.

Sylvanas stopped only to tell one of the younger rangers to wake Marris and provide him with breakfast in the morning. He would have to learn to wake early enough and get his own breakfast, but for now some assistance in that would suffice. When she got to her quarters which she shared with Lor’themar she could hear him complaining about the situation. She steeled herself and entered the room.

“What is he doing here? He’s _human,”_ he spat, saying the last word as if it tasted like rotten meat.

“I am well aware of that fact. You remind me of it every chance you get.” Her eyes flared in anger, their glow increasing with every word.

“Why bring him here and give him his own room? The Enclave is for Farstriders, not humans. Their camp was placed so that their stench wouldn’t permeate the building. Now you have one of them actually _inside_. I think I can smell him from here.”

“Oh get over yourself. You’ve had a grudge against him since he crossed the border. Other than that training incident – one that _you_ created I might add – he’s done nothing against you.”

“You’ve been enamored of him since he got here,” Lor’themar retorted. “He’s not that good, even for a human. Without cheating, he would never be able to beat me.”

“You’re _jealous_ of him! You think I would go to bed with _him_? I would remind you that I am not my sisters. I don’t know what they see in those humans, but it was enough for them to turn their backs on their people. I don’t have any intentions of doing that. Your place in my bed is very secure.”

Lor’themar sneered at the idea of her bedding Marris. “You know who the better man is, then.”

“At this point, I’m not sure. You’re acting like a spoiled brat rather than the Ranger Lord of the Farstriders.”

“Why give him the special treatment? Why single _him_ out?”

“Because he _is_ good. If he were Quel’Dorei he would become one of our best rangers.”

“Hah!” Lor’themar barked.

“I’ve been watching him over the past few weeks. He’s dedicated to learning as much as he can as fast as he can. While his companions are off drinking and chasing each other to see who beds whom, he’s practicing. He studies what his trainers are teaching intently, mimicking them as they are teaching the moves.”

She watched as he ground his teeth at her praise. There was something more going on, but she couldn’t put her finger on it.

“Why not just leave him with the others? Let him continue learning what we’ve agreed to teach them and let him go back to his farm?”

“He’s so much more than a farmer! There is intelligence there! He has it in him to be more than a common soldier!”

“You want to make him a ranger?”

“Of course not! At least…”

“What? You’re plotting something.”

“What if there were a human ranger corps in Lordaeron? Not as good as us, of course, but better than the army Terenas currently has.”

He stood in shocked silence for a minute. “Why?”

“It would make our borders more secure.”

“But we have the gates and Runestones. Nothing can get past them, especially with the Farstriders also patrolling and keeping things secure.”

“This is true, but extra security is never a bad thing. We can also call upon them if needed to fight the trolls.”

“You think he could put such a thing together?”

“He’s not my ideal, and he does have motives of his own. He’s abrasive around others, and so far that seems to be his biggest flaw. I don’t know if that’s because of his upbringing or just the way he is.”

“You know his fellow humans will see this as special treatment.”

“They’ll also see that he’s not around them.”

Lor’themar shook his head. “You know that won’t count for much.”

“It will count for something.”

“What about the Farstriders? Do you think they’ll just welcome a human into the Enclave with open arms?”

“I’m not making him a Farstrider. This is for a short time and then he’ll be gone.”

“He’s a human. Nobody’s going to tolerate him being here!”

“This argument is stupid. We have to train these humans. I’m in charge. This particular human has been a pain in the ass for those who were training him. I’m removing him from their care so they should be thankful. I’m going to keep him so busy they won’t even notice his presence.”

“None of that will matter. They will hate the very idea that there’s a human walking the halls of the Enclave serving their Ranger-General. They’re tolerating the humans because they have to and there’s nothing else to do right now. The trolls are quiet, so we aren’t having to deal with them. The humans make convenient practice dummies, nothing more.”

Sylvanas threw up her hands in disgust and stalked over to the table. Her dinner had been laid out and was cold, which didn’t matter. She had lost all appetite. She grabbed her wine goblet, filled it, and then drained it all at once.

“ _Why can’t he just accept this? Why does he have to fight me so hard about this human?”_

She stood there, eyes closed, trying to slow her breathing and calm down. She refilled her goblet again, took one last long breath, exhaled and turned back around. She knew what she was doing was right. Why couldn’t he see that?

“Did you tell Anasterian about this whole idea? You know he’s going to find out sooner or later. You know how the Farstriders love to gossip; I think it’s a racial trait. We’ve both been guilty of it ourselves. What happens when Anasterian finds out you’re personally training a human pet?”

“Leave that to me. I’ll handle it when the time comes. This argument is over. I’m going to take a long, hot bath and then go to sleep. Alone.”

She turned her back on him and went to the bathroom, shutting the door behind her. She turned the handles, plugged the drain, and began undressing. She realized she hadn’t even taken her armor off and cursed Lor’themar and his stupid argument. She carefully piled the armor near the door, took a sip of wine, and finished undressing. Going over to a shelf she examined the bottles of oil and grabbed a lavender scented oil to help her relax. She removed the stopper, poured the oil into the steaming water, put the stopped back into the bottle and replaced it on the shelf.

Stepping slowly into the full tub, she let the heat of the water soak into her flesh as she sank down turning her skin red from the heat of the water. She leaned against the back of the tub and reached for her wine. Strands of her long hair floated in the water, covering her breasts. Her body responded to the heat of the water and the scent of lavender surrendering the tension that had built up during the argument. The wine definitely helped with that, too.

“ _What am I getting myself into? I know Marris is better than the other humans. I’ve been watching him train and I know he’ll make a fine hunter. Farming is a waste of his talents. Still, there are human hunters who can teach him what he needs to know. I can introduce him to one of them.”_

She took another sip of wine, luxuriating in the subtle flavors and sinking further into the water until it was touching her chin. She breathed in the scented steam deeply then slowly released it along with the tension still in her. She felt better now and allowed her eyes to close.

“ _This whole mess is just a political show by both nations. We’re not at war with each other, but let’s face it, we don’t like each other very much. Would we really go to help them if they needed it? Probably not. Still, Anasterian told us to train the humans, so we are. I’m going above and beyond with Marris, though. Why? Why should I bother with him? I know Lor’themar doesn’t like the idea. Kael would probably hate it too. I don’t care. It feels… right, somehow. I’ll just have to be ready for the negative reactions. Nothing more can be done tonight. The real fun starts tomorrow.”_

With that final thought, she drained her goblet, finished washing up, and rose from the tub. She pulled the plug and dried herself off, stopping to look at herself in the mirror as she combed her hair. She was beautiful and she knew it.

“ _You’re vain, too,”_ she thought with a giggle.

She put her silken robe on, grabbed her clothes, armor, and goblet and left the room. She dropped her clothes into the woven basket, set he glass onto the table, and put her armor onto its stand. Lor’themar was gone, which caused a pang of regret in her heart. She hated arguing with him. He had been moody lately and she didn’t know why. Marris was part of it, but there was more to it. That would have to wait until later, though.

With a yawn she headed back to the bedroom, blowing out the lamps on the way. She pulled back the silken sheets, dropped her robe onto the floor, climbed into bed, and blew out the remaining lamp.

She remained fitfully awake until Lor’themar returned and joined her in bed.


	7. Field Trip

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nathanos settles into his new situation and then is tested.

Nathanos settled into his new routine quickly. He surprised everyone by waking before those sent to wake him arrived. When asked, he merely shrugged and explained that farm life often started well before sunrise. He was shown the important locations in the Enclave: the canteen where he could get his meals, the quartermaster who had various supplies (including a soap that had more of a musky smell instead of flowers,) and the Ranger-General’s office. By the end of the week he could make his way around blindfolded without asking for directions.

Sylvanas saw to it that he received new clothing, though not the fine silks he had expected. The tailor came that first day to take measurements and Nathanos nearly punched him for getting too familiar while measuring his inseam. The shirt he received was a nice green linen shirt, with a stylized brown leather vest that went over it. He liked the sturdy brown wool pants that fit well and gave him room to move. The boots he was given were too soft for his taste, though. They went to his knees and were made of soft, supple leather instead of the tough leather his old boots were made of. Finishing his ensemble was a soft greenish-grey woolen cloak. Much to his surprise, he could keep his beard, although he had to keep it trimmed.

Mornings were spent standing in attendance as Sylvanas listened to reports, then studying several subjects: reading and writing, map reading, and Thalassian, which Sylvanas herself taught. She ordered him to keep this last to himself. In time, he realized that the Quel’dorei said a lot that they wouldn’t have if they knew he understood them. Sylvanas also taught him how to act around nobles, which he learned reluctantly.

Where the mornings were devoted to indoor studies, the afternoons were spent outdoors. Sylvanas trained him in using two weapons at once and helped him improve his archery. She often took him into the woods and taught him how to track various creatures. He surprised her by knowing several of the herbs that grew wild. He learned the reason for the soft boots: moving silently through the woods, or at least trying to. He learned to sit still and listen to the sounds of the woods and understand what those sounds were telling him.

In the evenings he would get dinner for Sylvanas and Lor’themar, take it to them, then get his own dinner and retire to his room. Once there, he would eat dinner while reading the books the Ranger-General gave him to practice his reading. At first, they were little more than primers, but as he worked at it and his comprehension grew, she gave him histories and military tactics books. When he couldn’t see straight anymore, he bathed and went to bed.

At the end of two months Sylvanas led him back to the other humans. They had been split into four groups, with the three best of the other volunteers leading three of the groups. Nathanos was put in charge of the other group, much to their dismay. Nathanos looked over his group. From what he remembered, many of these people tended to struggle with their training, mostly because they were too busy getting into trouble. He sighed and knew this pairing was deliberate, but he wasn’t sure if it was Windrunner’s idea to test him or Lor’themar’s idea to punish him.

The groups were to go out for two weeks in the wilderness and find several objects that were hidden. There would be other challenges and they would have to find their way back to the enclave. They knew that they would be watched by the Quel’Dorei but would be helped only if things went horribly wrong. This was a harsh test of the humans’ abilities, but one that was relatively safe. The elves knew this terrain like the backs of their hands; if anyone got lost the elves would find them.

The two groups were given meagre supplies for the weeks. Each trainee was given 2 canteens of water, their bedroll, their weapon of choice, a handful of jerky, a knife, some rope, and a few other tools and supplies. They would have to build makeshift shelters, hunt for food, and find additional water. It would be a rough couple of weeks, but they should be able to survive.

Each group was led into the forest by their trainers. Nathanos paid attention to the forest as much as he could. After training with Sylvanas he realized just how loud the others were. The wildlife was silent as the squad walked through, their loud voices and footsteps giving ample warning. He stopped and picked herbs when he found them which earned him the scorn of his group.

“Look at him picking daisies,” laughed one of them.

“Ha ha…Going to make a crown of flowers?”

“Two months with them and he’s turning into an elf. Are your ears growing longer?”

Nathanos ground his teeth and continued.

“ _They’ll need these herbs later. If they had paid attention, they’d know this.”_

The group hiked through the woods for most of the day, then were left to find a suitable campsite. Half of the squad wanted to set up camp right there. The other half wanted to find a better spot. Squad cohesion (what little there was) evaporated as the two halves started a loud argument. Nathanos was losing command even before he really had it.

“ENOUGH!”

Everyone stopped arguing at once, and for a moment, there was silence in the forest.

“I know you don’t like me, and I assure you the feeling is mutual,” he growled. “That is irrelevant. For this week we must tolerate each other. This isn’t just a walk in a park. We are out here on our own. We don’t have a lot of food or water, and half of you have none because you ate and drank it while we walked here. The elves are watching us and are having a good laugh. There are only a few hours left in the day and we have to find a place to set up camp, build a fire, build some sort of shelter, and get a good night’s rest. This isn’t a fun party walk through the woods.”

The others stared at him.

Prestor Appleton broke the silence.

“Just because the pretty elf likes to screw you doesn’t mean you can order – “

Prestor’s comment was cut short by a punch to the jaw that sent him sprawling.

“I want you all to forget any ideas you have about me sleeping with the Ranger-General,” Nathanos growled menacingly. “In case you hadn’t noticed, she is in a relationship with an elf. Perhaps you’ve seen him: tall, pale hair that’s usually in a ponytail, green eyes, three rings in each ear. Goes by the name Ranger Lord Theron.” Nathanos heard some faint snickering coming from the forest. “The _only_ relationship between myself and the Ranger-General is one of student and teacher.”

Doyle Notley spoke up. “Why’d she take you? What makes _you_ special?”

“Yeah, why do you get to live the fancy life while we’re stuck in tents?”

“I paid attention to the trainers. I pushed myself harder than you. She saw that I could handle a lot more than I was getting through the training they were giving us. She’s teaching me more than you could handle, and that training is going to get us through these weeks. If you think I’m living a soft life, you’re welcome to join me waking before dawn, studying every morning, doing arms practice every afternoon, then doing even more studying until long after the sun goes down. It makes what you do look easy. Now, let’s find a campsite and set up camp.”

The squad reluctantly picked up their gear again and continued through the woods. The idiots who drank all their water complained the entire way. The complaints increased as they continued. After a half hour more of brisk hiking, they were tired, hungry, and thirsty.

“ _Let them complain. They need to know being stupid is dangerous,”_ Nathanos thought. “ _That looks like a suitable campsite ahead. Level, good coverage, and I think I hear ducks nearby.”_

When they reached the spot, he was satisfied with the site. There was enough room to set up shelter for all of them, plenty of leaves to make beds out of, and enough deadfall to provide firewood for a while. The squad collapsed when they reached the site. A few tried to drink from empty canteens, forgetting that they had drunk all their water during the hike here. As a whole, the squad was demoralized and tired.

“I know you’re tired, but we need to set up camp. Doyle, collect some wood and – “

“I’m not taking any orders from you! You may think you’re special, but you’re not.”

A chorus of agreement with Doyle sounded throughout the camp. Nathanos sighed.

“Very well. You wish to suffer for two weeks, go ahead. If we don’t work together this will be harder on us all. You’ll be cold sleeping on the hard ground. You’ll be hungry and thirsty. If it rains, you’ll be wet, too. As for me, I’m going to set up my shelter and get a fire going.”

The squad laughed and cheered at their “victory.” Nathanos grabbed his axe and set to gathering firewood to build a fire. They would all benefit from this but there was no way to stop that. Once he had a decent fire built up, he cut small logs to build a small lean to, angling the logs to reflect the heat from the fire onto his “bed” which he made out of a large pile of leaves. By the time he was done, there wasn’t much time left before sundown. He grabbed the cookpot and headed towards where he had heard the ducks.

He eventually found a decent sized pool, fed by a small waterfall and which emptied into a creek. He smiled as he saw the cattails lining one bank. He sat for a few moments and nodded in satisfaction as fish darted back and forth in the clear water and ducks and geese flew overhead. He waded into the cool water and pulled the cattails up, rinsing their roots in the water, then filled the cookpot with water from the waterfall and returned to camp.

The squad hadn’t done much to make their camp. They did keep the fire going, which was good, but their idea of “shelter” was to roll their bedrolls onto the ground. A couple of them attempted to make crude tents using the canvas they had been given, which was something, but those tents wouldn’t last long. This first night was going to be a real learning experience.

“Look at the mighty hunter. Tell me, did those put up much of a fight?” Prestor teased.

Nathanos shrugged. “At least I have food and water for tonight. What do you have?”

The squad perked up at the words “food and water.”

“It’s too bad you decided you don’t need me.”

“Oh, please share with us. We ran out of food and water on the way here.”

“Then let that be a lesson to all of you. Had you been more sparing of your food and drink, you’d still have some. It’s getting too dark to make the trip to the water tonight. I’ll show you where it is in the morning.”

With that, he proceeded to strip down some of the cattails to get the tender, edible centers, carefully laying the leaves aside. He set the water on the fire to get hot and pulled out some of the herbs he had gathered along the way. When the water was hot, he dipped his tin cup in and filled it with water, then added some of the herbs to make a tea. As his tea was steeping, be pulled out some jerkey and started eating his dinner, eating more cattail than jerky. To finish his meal, he drank his tea and let the warmth relax him. When his meal was done, he set the cookpot to the side to let the water cool, arranged the cattail leaves on top of his lean-to, then laid down and went to sleep.


	8. Rough Outing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first week gets off to a rocky start

He awoke early the next morning, before the others did. He stoked the fire and added wood, then ate some more of his jerky. He went to the cookpot and found it empty, which he expected. He knew they had taken the water and several stalks of the cattails. He slept lightly and woke often as they stumbled around in the dark. He was surprised that none of them had tried to kill him in his sleep – not that they would have succeeded. As he waited for them to wake, he started working on a fish trap, weaving sticks and cattail leaves into a cone shape.

The first of them woke after sunrise, shaking from cold. Therese Adlam was somewhat thin, with blonde hair and blue eyes. She had tried to flirt with Nathanos when they first arrived but found others who were more attentive to her charms. She huddled next to the fire to warm up.

“I don’t know how you slept through the night. I was freezing all night,” she said.

“You were sleeping on the ground. That will suck the heat out of you. You also don’t have any real shelter. My lean-to reflects heat from the fire onto me, and I have a thick bed of leaves under me to keep me warm. If you’re willing to follow my lead, I’ll help you build one.”

A deep baritone moaned from across the fire. “Does that go for everyone, or just her?”

“Morning Norwin. Yes, it does. I’ve learned a lot in the past couple of months and I’m determined to pass this test. As much as I hate to admit it, I can’t do that without you.”

He finished his fish trap and stood. “We need water and more cattails. Bring the cookpot, the pail, and your canteens.”

The two rose stiffly and stretched, running to separate areas of the woods first. They returned and grabbed the needed containers, then followed their new leader to the pond. As they approached it, they watched a flock of ducks take off. Nathanos staked his trap under the water, where he saw the fish swimming the night before. The other two filled the various containers and returned. Together they gathered cattails and then returned to camp where they found several others awake.

The others gave Norwin and Therese strange looks as they arrived. Nathanos nodded to them and offered to teach them how to better survive if they followed him and did what he said. He made it clear that they could be on their own, but if they chose that route, they would receive no help from him. None of the others chose to take him up on the offer. Nathanos shrugged and turned to Norwin and Therese.

“We have several tasks to accomplish while we’re here. Better shelter is one of them. I saw some willows at the pond as well as willow saplings. We can use those to make better shelter. I’ll also show you how to make fish traps so we can catch more fish.”

“Where did you learn all of this? Did _she_ teach you all of this?” Norwin asked.

“I’ve learned some of it from the Ranger-General, yes. I learned to build fish traps from my father. Our farm is about a half day from the Thronduil River, and we get fish from there. I learned what weeds are good and what are useless from living on a farm. Alchemists and healers use some of them for potions and poultices. When I was younger, I’d go out and pick the weeds, then bring them back where my grandmother would sort through them, teaching me which was which. We would take them to market and make a few coppers selling them. Now, let’s get going. There’s a lot to do and not a lot of time to do it.”

They spent the rest of the day building decent shelters using willow saplings, cattail leaves, bark, and leaves. They gathered wood for the fire and made more fish traps. The rest of the squad mostly sat around and watched. A couple found their way to the pond and filled their canteens, then tried to catch some fish by hand with no success. They grabbed some cattails and returned to camp where they dropped down onto their bedrolls, ate their cattails, and watched the others work. Nathanos smirked and shook his head.

“ _They’ll wish they had made better shelter if those clouds I saw earlier are what I think they are.”_

Late afternoon he went to plant the new fish traps and check the one he had set earlier. He was pleasantly surprised to find two medium sized fish inside. The three of them would be eating well tonight. He returned to camp taking a roundabout route back, checking for game trails and wild herbs and edible plants. He handed the fish to Therese when he got back to camp.

“Why are you giving these to me?”

“While I haven’t poisoned anyone yet, you do NOT want to eat my cooking. I can make it raw or I can turn it into charcoal. Take your pick. I can’t do anything in between.”

“And you assume I can cook?”

“Can’t you?

“A little. It’s not the best.”

“Oh, just give those to me,” exclaimed Norwin. “These are nice. I’ll have them cleaned and cooking shortly. Nathanos, what herbs do you have?”

The entire camp stared at him in amazement.

“Ummm…I found some wild onions and carrots, dill and sage.”

“Great! From now on, you clean the fish and I’ll cook them. Same with any other game you get.”

“That’s a deal! Give me the fish. I’ll clean them while you get the onions and carrots ready. It’s been a long, hard day and I’m hungry.”

The rest of the camp gnawed on cattails as the trio ate their fish and roasted onions and carrots. They didn’t look happy with the situation but decided to do nothing to change it. After dinner, the three talked for a while about the next day, then went to sleep. The others stayed up talking to each other.

“Anyone else still hungry?” asked Doyle.

“Yeah. Those cattails aren’t very filling. That fish sure smelled good,” said another.

“They didn’t leave any for us.”

“He said he’d share if we do what he says,” responded Doyle.

“I’m not following him. He’s a dick who thinks he’s better than us,” exclaimed Preston. “We all know he’s sleeping with the elf. Why else would she want him around? She’s probably sleeping with most of the elves around her too.”

The camp snickered at this.

“You’re just jealous because she’s not sleeping with you!” came a voice from the darkness. The snickers turned to laughs.

Preston turned angrily towards the voice. “I wouldn’t want to sleep with her! She probably has some sort of disease from sleeping around.”

“Shhhh…Keep it down” whispered Doyle. “We don’t want to wake _him_ up.”

“So, what are we going to do? If we attack him, the elves will stop us and send us all packing.”

There was silence for a while.

“Look, we have to do certain things these next two weeks, then we get to go back to our tents. We don’t have to do what he says. We can just do it ourselves. We can build our own shelters. They showed us how and with what. We can catch our own fish. Better yet, we can take theirs.”

There were murmurs of agreement among the rebels.

From his bed, Nathanos watched the proceedings warily.

“ _This Preston is becoming quite the leader. I’m going to have to watch him very closely.”_

The rain started in the middle of the night and continued the next day. Nathanos, Therese, and Norwin were dry in their shelters, but the rebels were soaking wet by morning, even those who attempted to make tents using the canvas they had. Nathanos was disappointed to see the fire completely out, but he had figured it would be given the weather. He grabbed some leaves and dry sticks from his bed, took out a brown cattail seed pod from his pouch and went to light the fire again.

There were some dry logs in the center of the woodpile, which would help. Pulling the cattail pod apart, he created a tinder pile in his hand, then struck flint to steel a couple of times until a spark landed in the tinder. Cupping his hands around the tinder, he blew until a flame appeared, eagerly catching on the dry seeds. He carefully set the burning tinder on the leaves and continued to blow on the forming coals as he added the dry sticks. He put the relatively dry logs on around the now burning leaves and continued stacking the logs in a criss-crossed pattern.

He tended the fire for some time, rain dripping from the hood of his cloak to land with a sizzle on the now hot coals of the fire. Once the fire was going well enough, be carefully laid the rest of the logs around the fire so the heat would dry them out. The cookpot was filling with rainwater, so he set that on the fire to heat up. A nice Mageroyal tea would warm people up and get them ready for a soggy day. As he did all of this, he could feel the stares of the cold, wet rebels try to burn a hole through him.

“ _Not my fault they didn’t build shelters yesterday. I know they were all shown how to make shelters.”_

When he had the water heating up, he turned to one of the rebels; Anselme was his name.

“There will be plenty of hot water shortly. I’d advise grabbing your mug, filling it, and making some tea. That’ll warm you up quickly. You’ll need to build decent shelters, though finding dry materials will be tough. There are plenty of willow saplings left as well as suitable building materials around here. A simple lean-to shouldn’t take too long. Enough to get you out of the rain, at least.”

“Why should we listen to you?” sneered Preston.

“I figured you’d like to get out of the rain. If you want to keep getting soaked and then come down with a fever, by all means, be my guest.”

Preston glared at Nathanos, then turned away, grabbing an axe, and heading into the forest to gather materials to build a lean-to. Two of the others went with him to help leaving three of the rebels in camp.

“Look, Preston’s a good guy,” said Anselme. “It’s just that you’re getting special training and all, and he’s kinda jealous…”

“I don’t care about him being jealous,” Nathanos snapped. “We’re out here in the wilderness and one mistake could kill any of us. Who knows what sickness you’ve picked up because you couldn’t be bothered to build a decent shelter yesterday. We have tasks which we have to do and now we’re going to be set back a day so you can build your shelters and dry out.”

Anselme shrank back as Nathanos raged. He knew Nathanos was right. The cold rainwater trickled down his face as if to drive the point home.

“You’ve all been fighting me since this exercise began. I don’t care if you like me or not. I’m an ass. I know this and I don’t care. What I do care about is that someone put me in charge of all of you. You’re _my_ responsibility whether either of us likes it or not. That means your lives are my responsibility. I’ve watched all of you train, and this group has spent the most time trying _not_ to learn anything. You never practice the skills you’re taught, you spend as much time as possible trying to avoid any tasks at all, and you refuse to pay attention to the lessons. Why did any of you even come here in the first place?”

“I-I don’t want to be a farmer. I…”

“You want to be a hero? Right?”

Anselme nodded, tears mingling with the rainwater running down his face.

“You thought you’d just pick up a sword and be off slaying dragons?” Nathanos jeered. “Well it isn’t that easy.”

“Stop it!” yelled Therese. “Can’t you see he feels bad enough?”

Nathanos paused. “These aren’t games! The enemy doesn’t care how you feel! You must train your muscles to use a sword instead of a plow. You must learn when to use each different attack to beat your opponent. There will come a time when your life and the lives of people you love depend – “

He stopped abruptly and closed his eyes, fists clenched. Nobody dared break the silence.

“Look, I know this seemed like a chance to start a new life. I’ve heard all the stories, too. King Terenas’ adventures when he was younger. King Llayne Wrynn of Stormwind. The Kirin Tor and the Guardian. Stories of the Farstriders. Knights, wizards, the occasional rogue. Paladins. It’s easy to get caught up in them and imagine you’re one of them, especially for us. The truth is, none of the heroes in the stories just picked up a weapon and knew how to use it. They all had to bust their asses and practice and work for it.”

He walked over to Anselme and placed a hand on his shoulder.

“You have it in you to be a hero. We all do. We just have to work for it. Are you willing to do that?”

The younger lad looked up and nodded his head.

Nathanos smiled. “Good. Let’s get some shelter built for you so you can dry off.”


	9. Spiders

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The squad gets to kill some spiders

They got a couple of shelters built that morning. They were simple shelters that would work to keep the rain off. The leaf beds were soaking wet, as were all the materials used, but they were within range of the fire’s heat and soon the dampness was starting to evaporate. Preston, Doyle, and the rest of the rebels also made simple lean-tos, copying what the others were doing, though there were several leaks in their roofs.

A check of the fish traps was disappointing; all the traps were empty. Nathanos took a couple squad members around to where he had found the onions and carrots. Further foraging turned up a few more edible plants which they gathered and returned to camp. The onions and carrots were put in the coals to roast and the other greens were tossed together to make a salad. It wasn’t the best of meals, but it was something.

“We have to go out tomorrow and gather spider legs. I wanted to get that done today, but the weather didn’t cooperate.”

“Spider legs?” asked Anselme.

“Yeah. Apparently, the larger spiders have meaty legs that the elves cook up and eat. Or something like that.”

Several of the squad turned green at the prospect. Spiders were never welcome, and the thought of large spiders made things worse. Even Prestor shuddered at the thought of facing large spiders.

“We’ll also need to harvest five intact poison sacs as well. This means we can’t just hack the spiders to bits. I’m thinking of using bows and hitting them at long range.”

There was a murmur of approval from the squad, even the rebels seemed to agree with the tactic. It would still be dangerous. If the spiders outnumbered the humans, people could get seriously hurt. Everyone looked glum. Between the rain, the lack of fish to eat, and now the prospect of fighting giant spiders, they hadn’t had a great day. Everyone turned in early that day, too worried about what the next day would bring.

Morning came too early for most. The coals were easily coaxed back into a fire, and Nathanos put the water on to heat up. A quick trip to the pond was rewarded with several nice fish. They would need the food for the trip to get the spider meat. He gathered the fish and returned to camp to clean them while waiting for the others to wake up.

After a much-appreciated breakfast, Nathanos banked the coals and covered them with dirt to keep them warm but minimize the chance of starting a forest fire. Everyone gathered their weapons and headed out. According to the map, the spiders were to the west, so he headed that way.

As they marched along, the two groups remained separate; the rebels acted on Preston’s orders while the rest followed Nathanos.

“ _I’m sure it’s just coincidence that Preston’s orders are the same as mine, just a few seconds after I give mine,”_ Nathanos observed with a chuckle.

They made good time, skirting around several ghostclaw lynxes on the way. They saw some deer and a couple of the rebels took wild shots. Nathanos smirked as the shots all missed and the deer scattered. The rebels started chasing after it.

“Stop! We don’t have time for that!”

The would-be hunters continued their chase, then stopped when the deer vanished into the woods. They looked exhausted and dejected.

“What were you going to do with the deer while we fought the spiders?” Nathanos demanded.

“Shut your mouth, elf lover,” snapped Preston. “We haven’t had a lot to eat, if you haven’t noticed, and we’re hungry.”

“We’re all hungry. That’s part of being out in the wilderness. We’ve been lucky so far. There will be days where we won’t be able to eat at all. We still need to act calmly and stick to plans.”

“What do you know? You came into this knowing no more than the rest of us!”

“I took the time to learn, idiot. What would have happened if they continued to run off after the deer and something happened to them? We’ve seen several lynxes already who would be happy to have an imbecile for a meal. Even if they caught the deer, we would have had to take the time to dress it and then carry it to the spiders and back.”

“So what? At least we would have had meat.”

The two were nose to nose and only saw each other. The rest of the squad eyed each other nervously, expecting a fight to break out. Several reached for the hilts of their weapons.

“Meat at what cost? Are you willing to let your friends die so you can fill your belly?”

Preston looked surprised at that; he hadn’t considered that option.

“Of course not! I…I…” he stammered.

“You didn’t think it through. You’re only thinking about right now, not 5 minutes from now, not 5 hours from now, and not 5 days from now.” He turned his back on Preston to address the squad. “We need to get these spiders taken care of. We’re all hungry, but we’ll survive on what we’ve already eaten. When we get back to camp, we’ll focus on hunting for something more substantial. Those of you who are following Preston, you can set up your own hunts.”

The tension eased up slightly, though it was still there. They continued moving for another half hour until they started seeing massive webs. Everyone halted nervously, seeing the density of the webs and the bones that littered the ground. There were humanoid bones there, some from elves and some from something bigger. They saw some coins scattered on the ground as well as clothing and other items. They scanned the area nervously looking for the creatures that were responsible for these deaths.

They didn’t have to look extremely hard. The grove was full of spindleweb spiders, and a few were starting to move towards this new prey that was foolish enough to come to them. A few of the squad just stood there in a panicked shock; some fumbled with their bows trying to get a few shots off in self-defense, and two of the rebels turned and ran.

“Ready! Draw! Loose!” Nathanos yelled, his own voice betraying nervousness.

A few arrows flew and struck one of the spiders.

“Norwin, Anselme, attack the one on the left. Therese, attack the one on the right. Ready! Draw! Loose!”

Another flight of arrows soared and hit both spiders. One of the arrows sank deeply between the eyes of one of the spiders. The spider sank to the ground.

“Great shot, Doyle!” Nathanos cheered as he pulled another arrow from his quiver, nocked it, and shot.

The second spider went down, but there were many more spiders on their way. Shooting them full of arrows was a good idea, but the spiders were closing in faster than the humans could fell them. They had to change tactics and fight with melee weapons.

“Those of you in front, change weapons and prepare for melee combat! Those in back, keep firing, but be careful!”

Nathanos drew his axes and set his feet to prepare for the collision of the oncoming spiders. He sank one axe in the head of a spider then sank the other axe into the side of its head. The spider’s momentum carried it past him before it sank to the ground. He pulled his axes free from the corpse and turned to face the next one.

“Try to pair up! These beasts will have a harder time taking on more than one opponent.”

Therese joined him on the next spider, thrusting her sword between the joints into the soft flesh underneath while he severed a leg from the body. Green ichor flowed from the wound and splashed onto him. The spider skittered back then lunged for him attempting to bite him. He turned quickly and just managed to avoid the bite as Therese impaled the spider just where its head met the body.

The combat was fierce and fast. Working together, the squad managed to clear out the spider colony with few injuries. Several squad members suffered temporary poisoning that cleared up quickly, and a few were trapped in webs until they managed to cut the webs and break free. The rebels tended to fight alongside rebels, and Preston managed to give some good orders, rallying them when they needed it most.

When the fight was over, everyone stood for a while breathing heavily. Most were attempting to make sense of what had just happened. A couple were busy off to the side retching. Nathanos saw to it that everyone was bandaged and recovering from their wounds, then turned to the task of harvesting what was needed from the spiders. The spider legs had a white meat in them that was edible but needed to stay in the exoskeleton of the legs. There were plenty of legs for the elves to have as well as extras for the squad.

The humans gathered the coins scattered around the ground as well as other items: some linen cloth, malachite gems, a couple of belts, a nice pair of boots, a knife, a notched sword, and some bits and pieces of armor. Nathanos found a nice bow and an axe for himself. Once everyone had finished gathering items, they headed back the way they came.

Loaded down as they were the trip took longer and people were complaining about the elves using them to do the dirty work to get their stuff. Nathanos called for a brief rest.

“They didn’t just give us this task so their hands wouldn’t get dirty,” he said. “This was our first real taste of combat. The spiders weren’t that big a challenge to the group of us working together. We got what we needed and more. Some of you found some nice armor pieces, some of you got some nice weapons. Everyone’s purse grew richer, too.”

The humans thought about it for a few moments while drinking their water. They looked at their prizes and realized he had a point. The battle had been frightening and exhilarating at the same time; though the spiders were deadly, attacking them as a team lessened the danger to the squad. Slowly they realized and appreciated the true reason for the task. They made it back to the camp with much less complaining.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm envisioning giant spider legs being something like crab legs. The elves eat them in a similar manner, and they're something of a delicacy.  
> Part of this wilderness training will involve them going on quests, just like every character in the game: Go fetch this, go kill 10 of these...  
> Also, this is taking place in what is now the Ghostlands, only there's no Dead Scar, scourge, ghosts, etc. so those quests can't be used here.


	10. Ambush!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The squad is tested as gnolls show up during their march south.

The next few days kept them busy. There were several tasks that they had to accomplish that required them to travel, explore, and hone their skills. They learned how to identify tracks and plants needed for survival. They hunted several animals and brought back the pelts for the elves. They were all getting used to working as a group and taking orders, though the rebels still hesitated to take orders from Nathanos.

Preston still caused what trouble he could, often leading his rebels on parallel tasks or banding together during combat instead of working with the whole group. He took his rebels out on a separate trip to get lynx pelts and insisted on foraging for his own food supply. Nathanos didn’t stop him; there would be a confrontation soon enough and they were too busy to rush that. The tasks were getting done and everyone was staying healthy enough.

Towards the end of the week, they caught two ducks. Norwin managed to make a tasty duck broth which everyone used to fill a canteen with to keep for later and made some jerky out of several fish. Overall, they weren’t hungry and considered themselves lucky. At the end of the week, they were informed that they would have to leave and retrieve an object far to the south, then return to the Farstrider Enclave.

Camp was broken: the fire extinguished after a couple of coals were packed in a cup with tinder to keep it hot but not on fire, all shelters broken down with reusable parts packed away for use later, and the fish traps collected to be used elsewhere. They did their best to return the camp area to the state they found it in, then started hiking towards their next destination.

This hike was different than the hike on their first day. The squad was quiet and spent more time observing the area around them. Instead of drinking their water and eating their jerky, they rationed their supplies, drinking a few mouthfuls of water during breaks. They split into two groups, although some of the rebels occasionally walked with the rest of the squad for periods of time.

When evening approached, they found a campsite near the Elrendar River. A fire was quickly started using the coals that were packed earlier in the day. Shelters were much simpler since they would only be used for the night. People were tired and set up camp quickly and quietly, then relaxed to drink some broth and eat some dried duck before going to sleep. Those on watch quickly were the only ones still awake.

The next morning was a repeat of the previous one. By now everyone knew what their duty was so camp could be broken as fast as possible. When they were done, it was difficult to tell there had been a camp there, at least to human eyes. The squad broke into two separate groups again and started off heading southward. When they reached the river, they went up and down stream until they found a suitable ford and crossed.

As they hiked southward, Nathanos often ranged ahead. This area of the Eversong Woods had long been claimed and settled by the Quel’Dorei but it didn’t hurt to practice scouting skills. Nathanos sometimes noticed one of the rangers assigned to watch over the squad and smiled to himself. It seemed that they weren’t quite as good as their reputation would have them be. He continued forward, acting as if he hadn’t seen them. If Windrunner asked, he’d tell her that he noticed them, but otherwise saw no reason to disrupt their illusion.

Nathanos stopped suddenly. He could no longer hear birds singing or squirrels chirping. Looking around, he saw nothing, but his instincts were on high alert. He crouched down and examined the plants around him. Still nothing. He moved slowly forward, nearly crawling, eyes wide open and ears straining to catch any sound. There! A grunt of some kind over that rise. Crawling carefully, he inched his way to the top of the hill and looked over. Below him was a squad of gnolls. He closed his eyes for a moment, fighting the urge to attack them. Instead he carefully backed down, got up and quietly ran toward the humans.

“There’s gnolls ahead!” he whispered urgently as soon as he got back. “We should be able to take them out, but we need to work together. These aren’t mindless beasts.”

As expected, half of the group turned to Preston to see his reaction.

“ _This isn’t the time for this petty shit,”_ Nathanos mused angrily.

“The gnolls are headed this way. They’re all armed and armored, though it looks like they are a scouting group. We can set up an ambush, which will give us the advantage of surprise.”

Nathanos outlined his plan, and half of the squad quickly took their places. The rebels just stood there. Nathanos glared angrily at them, aware that the gnolls were getting closer with each passing second.

“I don’t know what your problem is but standing here in the open waiting for them is suicide. Normally I wouldn’t mind that, but if you die, the rest of us will also be killed, and I don’t want that.”

With that, he crawled into the underbrush leaving Preston and his rebels standing there. Many of the rebels looked scared and uncertain, and they all dove for cover when they heard the faint grunts and growls of the gnolls.

Nobody dared breathe as the gnolls approached. These were trained scouts who knew they were in enemy territory and were alert. They stopped and looked around, sniffing the air suspiciously. The humans tensed, ready to spring from their concealment at the first sign that their cover had been blown. After a few tense moments, the gnolls started moving again. When they had mostly moved past the ambush point, Nathanos yelled the signal to attack, and the squad burst forth, attacking the gnolls rear.

The gnolls were taken completely by surprise. Two fell to arrows in the back right away. The rest put up a vicious fight, growling and yipping as they slashed and thrust at their attackers. The humans yelled and fought fiercely using all the skills they had been learning over the summer. Armor on both sides took damage and blood flowed from wounds.

Nathanos spared no mercy for the gnolls. His first two shots with his bow took out one of the first gnolls. After that, he dropped his bow and charged with his axes, chopping at the beasts, and cutting deep. His muscles moved on their own, thanks to hours of practice. Those gnolls who faced him quickly decided to fight others and stay away from this madman.

The leader of the gnolls tried barking out commands to his group in a desperate attempt to form a defense. He was losing his men to these humans, and retreat was the only way any of them were going to survive. He was confused, though. “ _Why humans here? Where elves? Must run!”_ He saw a human headed for him, a snarl on his face, blood dripping from his axes. This was too much. He turned and ran.

Nathanos charged toward the leader, focused on his prey. Gnolls who stumbled into his path received savage blows from his axes and quickly fell or moved out of his way. The leader turned and ran and Nathanos let out a yell and ran after him. The gnoll was panicked and often stumbled over logs and branches as he ran. Nathanos pulled one arm back and launched one of his axes at the gnoll. It hit in the creature’s shoulder and knocked him down. As he caught up to the gnoll, he leapt over a clumsy slash, grabbing his axe and pulling it from the beast as he went past.

The gnoll got up and faced his attacker, though his shield wasn’t held as high as it should be. The human was breathing heavily as he stared at the gnoll, a look of pure hatred on his face. There was a brief hesitation as the two foes sized each other up, and then the combat began.

The gnoll was good. He had survived many years and had learned his lessons well. Nathanos was hard pressed to block its attacks and was having trouble getting around the round shield. Nathanos had an advantage, though; the gnoll’s wound was draining him and its attacks were slowing. Nathanos managed to hook the shield with his axe and he pulled hard, exposing the gnoll. He followed with a hard chop to the gnoll’s shoulder, cutting deeply and nearly severing the arm. The gnoll dropped his shield as the arm went limp. He slashed wildly at the human forcing him back.

Nathanos smiled wickedly, knowing he had won this fight. He pressed the attack, forcing the gnoll to block chop after chop until it missed, and an axe sank deeply into its chest. There was a look of surprised denial on its face for a split second before a second axe sank into its forehead. The body sank to the ground lifeless as Nathanos continued to hack at it, blood flying from the axes as he swung them furiously at the body.

“Nathanos!”

He turned quickly to see the squad looking at him, shocked expressions on their faces. He stood over the mangled corpse, breathing heavily, the gnoll’s blood splattered all over; he could feel it dripping from his face. Nobody said anything; the forest was silent.

“Is anyone injured?” he asked.

There were minor injuries, but nothing severe. Surprise had favored and worked for them. They quietly informed him of this, afraid of him and unsure of what to make of what they saw.

“Clean your weapons, tend your wounds, and then take anything of value from the corpses, then let’s get going. I don’t know if there are more of these things out there.”

The scavenging was quickly done, and the squad moved forward. There was no conversation; the squad was tired and busy processing what had happened. They jumped at the slightest sound, ready for another fight if necessary. Fortunately, there was no need; the rest of the day went quietly. As they headed south, they saw a tower in the distance to their right.

“ _Windrunner Spire_. _That’s her home. Should we go warn them about the gnolls?”_ Nathanos wondered. He thought for a moment, then decided to keep moving. “ _Any gnolls stupid enough to attack them won’t last long. I’ll make sure our Quel’dorei shadows send word, though.”_

They found a suitable spot near a pond and set up camp. A deer made the mistake of not paying attention to its surroundings, and the squad ate well that night. Nathanos washed the blood from him thoroughly, turning the water red.

“ _Why did I do that?”_ he asked, remembering his actions earlier that day. “ _I lost control. Stupid. Stupid. I could have died. I could have hurt the squad. They’re scared of me now, and I can’t blame them. I can’t let that happen again.”_

When he returned to camp, he saw several of the elves there, talking to the others. They looked up as he walked towards them.

“You handled that well,” one of them said.

“Thanks. Have there been a lot of gnolls around here lately?”

“No. We’re searching for more of them right now.”

“Be sure to let those in Windrunner Spire know about them.”

“We’ve already done that,” the elf reported. “How are you handling this? Are you injured?”

“A few scratches, nothing major. If you have healers, make sure the squad gets healed up first.”

“I wasn’t really asking about physical wounds. I was wondering –”

“I am fine,” he interrupted. “Thank you for your concern.”

The elf seemed insulted at the rebuff but recovered quickly. He nodded, then turned to the others. Their healer had been busy using her magics to close the various wounds in the others. She walked up to Nathanos and he let her heal his wounds as well, then the elves left for the evening.

Watch was set even though the elves assured them they would watch them for the night. Those who weren’t on first watch fell asleep as soon as their heads hit their pillows. Nobody slept near Nathanos that night.


	11. A Day of Rest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The squad takes a day to reflect and recover from the fight with the gnolls

They took time to rest the next day. The squad shied away from Nathanos, still trying to make sense of what he had done. The pure savagery of the attack on the corpse made many of them wonder if he would do that to them if they crossed him. They could see that he was shaken as well; perhaps that was something that just happened spontaneously. They also knew that his plan for ambushing the gnolls had saved their lives. They just couldn’t figure out what to make of yesterday’s events.

The Quel’dorei visited them again to check on them. They verified that those who were injured were alright and counseled those who sought it. That skirmish was the first time they had fought sentient beings and it affected each person differently. Some were able to shake it off while others struggled with the fact that they had taken a sentient life.

Nathanos spent the morning reliving his actions against the gnoll leader. He had started the fight in control of himself countering each blow well and trying to figure out how to get around that damned shield.

“ _I’ll have to talk to Windrunner about better strategies against shields.”_

He remembered hooking the shield and pulling it, allowing him to make the final, fatal blows. After that…nothing until he heard someone call his name. That bothered him. He knew blacking out like that was dangerous. It made no difference this time, but what about the next, or the one after that?

“How are you doing?” asked a familiar voice.

Nathanos scrambled to his feet to greet the Ranger-General.

“I-I’m doing alright. Trying to get this group to go in the same direction is like herding cats. Half of them are willing to work with me and their skills have improved. The other half –"

“That’s not what I’m concerned about. How are _you_ doing? My Rangers said your strategy saved your squad’s lives. What concerns me are reports that you broke and hacked a gnoll corpse long after it was dead.”

He had a haunted look in his eyes as he looked at her, then turned away, his shoulders slumped.

“I-I lost control. I don’t even remember doing it until I stopped.”

“I see. Everyone faces similar moments, and each person responds in different ways,” she said, placing a hand on his shoulder.

“But what if I had turned on the squad? Half of them have been fighting my command the entire time. It wouldn’t have taken much to get me to attack them.”

“You didn’t attack them. Quit thinking in terms of ‘what if.’ That will get you nowhere. You went into what the trolls call a berserk rage. This was your first taste of real combat and –”

He spun around to face her, a look of conflict on his face.

“That’s…not quite right. We’ve had gnolls raid our farm in the past.”

“Ah. I see. You were getting revenge against the gnolls for attacking your farm.”

“I…Yes.”

“We’ll discuss this further when you get back to the Enclave. I don’t think you’ll have any more incidents like that in the future. You seldom repeat mistakes. Now, is there anything to drink around here? All this talking is making me thirsty, and some of that venison would make a nice lunch.”

Nathanos smiled and got Sylvanas some lunch. The familiar action calmed him, and he relaxed visibly. The two sat and talked for a while about what had happened in the past week and a half. She didn’t tell him if he was doing the right thing in allowing the rebels their freedom, only saying they’d discuss it at the Enclave. As they talked, he glanced at Preston. The man was staring at them with a sneer on his face and turned away as soon as Nathanos looked at him. Nathanos continued to look at him thoughtfully, then returned his attention to Sylvanas.

“I’m told you were concerned about my family. Thank you. The gnolls would have regretted attacking the spire. The real concern was Windrunner Village. While most of the people can defend themselves, there are children and other vulnerable people there who would probably be hurt. We did get more forces into that area as a precaution.”

Nathanos took the information in. He hadn’t thought of the village, even though he knew it was there.

“ _There’s more people in a village than a single tower,”_ he thought. “ _Larger numbers against you makes for a poorer target. I hadn’t considered the vulnerable, though, and the need to defend those vulnerable people.”_

“What happens next? Is it safe to continue with our training out here?”

“The other squads have also faced attacks. They haven’t come through quite as well as you did. Something is stirring up trouble. Our own patrols have also met with small groups of gnolls, but nothing major. We haven’t seen a large force of gnolls out here. Small groups, yes, but no main force. We think they’re trying to attack our mines, just to the east of where your skirmish was. It’s best to keep your eyes open just in case. We’re going to increase our patrols, so you might run into them. You’ll be going through troll territory later, and they’re tougher, so be on your guard.”

“We will. A few of the squad has been working with me on scouting. We’ll have a rotating scout as we move ahead. One last thing: the squad has been split this entire time. I’ve been trying to unite the squad, but the rebels as I call them have been stubborn. How can I get them to follow me?”

Sylvanas chuckled and smiled at him. “That is something you’ll have to figure out on your own. I can’t intervene for…reasons. You’ve done a good job just getting half of them to follow you. Lor’themar didn’t think you’d get any to listen to you. Right now, they’re a little afraid of you.”

“Because of yesterday?”

“Because of yesterday, yes. Talk to them and restore their confidence in you. You have a good head for tactics. Use it.”

With that, she stood up and he stood with her. The squad was looking much better and more relaxed, though Preston was giving the two of them that sneer again.

“ _I have to work on him,”_ Nathanos thought. “ _If I can win him over (or at least get him to be not so hostile) I can get the rest over.”_

“It looks as if your squad is recovering well. You’re on the downhill side of this exercise. You need to find the flag, then get back to the Enclave. That should take you 3 days to finish. I’ve visited the other three squads, and your squad has done the best so far. When you get back to the Enclave, dismiss your squad and report to me immediately.”

“Yes, Ma’am. Thank you. It hasn’t been easy.”

Sylvanas laughed. “For you? Probably not. This would be a relaxing week for any Farstrider, though. But they’ve had years of training and times when they lived on grubs, bugs, and tree bark. This was designed to give you a taste of what it’s like.”

He smiled. “I see. I suppose we’ve had it easy. That pond with fresh water and lots of fish, those spiders with the edible legs, that deer. We’ve eaten well, given the circumstances.”

“That you have. I will see you in 3 days, yes?”

“Yes, you will.”

She rejoined the other Quel’dorei and they left, melting into the woods. The squad’s spirits had been lifted by the visit, but once the elves were gone, they started settling back down. Nathanos knew he needed to keep their spirits up if they were going to finish this.

“Look…about what happened yesterday…”

All eyes turned to him attentively. Some looked worried, some looked lost. Preston scowled at him and the rebels gathered near him. Nathanos needed to act quickly or he would lose the entire squad.

“I made a mistake. I lost control. I let myself be carried away by the battle and my emotions. I won’t promise it won’t happen again, but I will assure you that I will do everything in my power to keep it from happening again. That’s the best I can do. You all did very well fighting the gnolls yesterday. Lesser people would have died. You came out with a few injuries. The Quel’dorei were impressed.”

The squad seemed happy with that last part. The tension in the air lessened. A few even smiled.

“We have three more days out here and then we’ll be back at the Enclave. We have to find a flag, then march back to the Enclave. Easy going. We need to keep a watch out for more gnolls and even trolls, but we should be able to handle anything we find. We’ll finish resting today then push on tomorrow.”

The squad spent the rest of the day preparing for the journey. Weapons were cleaned and sharpened; armor repaired as much as possible. The remaining venison was smoked and dried so they would have food for the remaining three days. The mood was considerably lighter, and the conversation turned to what everyone would be doing when they returned to the Enclave.

Nathanos spent most of his time walking among the others, helping them with their preparations and giving words of encouragement. He was more relaxed and looked forward to finishing this and getting back to routine. This had been a learning experience for everyone.

“ _I need to get through to Preston, though. He sees me as an enemy, and I think I know why.”_

He went away from the camp on the pretext of scouting the area. Most of the camp seemed OK with this. Preston seemed offended by it, and, after a few moments, followed him. When they were away from the camp, Nathanos stopped.

“You’re doing this to impress _her_. Tell me, was she impressed with what you did yesterday? Did she like hearing about how _savage_ you were?”

Nathanos spun and saw the raw hatred on the other man’s face, and the drawn dagger in his hand.

“I’m doing this because I was ordered to, just like the other three squad leaders. You’ve been fighting me this whole time. Do you plan to kill me now? Do you really think the Ranger-General will approve?”

With a growl, Preston leapt forward thrusting the dagger at Nathanos. Nathanos sidestepped the attack, grabbed the younger man’s wrist, and twisted hard forcing him to drop the weapon. Preston swung with his free hand and caught Nathanos in the jaw, forcing him back. Both men squared up, Nathanos rubbing his jaw, then he threw a body punch that landed in Preston’s gut.

The two continued fighting for several minutes, neither one truly gaining an advantage on the other. Blows were thrown and countered; both men were cut and bruised, and Nathanos’ nose appeared to be broken. In the end, Nathanos’ larger size and more intense training won the day for him. He managed to take the younger man down and he planted himself on top, pinning the smaller man down.

“You’re jealous. You think I’m getting ‘special favors’ from her. Favors that you want from her. You’re in _love_ with her. I saw it earlier today when you were looking at us.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about! Get off me!”

“I’ve been trying to figure it out. You haven’t been fighting me all this time just because I’m an ass. No. There was something more. Then I saw you this morning and remembered what you said about the Ranger-General and me when we first started, and everything clicked into place.”

Nathanos rolled off Preston and the younger man sat up slowly. Both men were breathing heavily and there was silence for a few minutes. Preston glared at Nathanos, then something broke inside him and he lowered his gaze.

“Don’t tell her, please.”

“Why would I? It’s none of my business. Look, she’s pretty, and there are times my body responds to that. We both know it happens, especially when we really don’t want it to. It also happens when other pretty elf women are around, and when pretty human women are around. At our age, pretty women tend to get a rise out of us. That doesn’t mean I’m sleeping with her. She sees me as a student only. She’s got the Ranger-Lord to satisfy any urges she has.”

Preston looked up, pain in his eyes.

“But I _love_ her. I so desperately want her to notice me like she noticed you. If I can be around her, I can win her over.”

“No, you can’t. She doesn’t see us as potential lovers. She’s Quel’dorei and that’s a whole different culture. There’s a whole world of differences between us. I know you can’t see it. I know you so desperately want it to be different, but the reality is that this is how it is. It hurts. I know it. I’ve felt it before myself.”

He placed a hand on the other man’s shoulder. “Look, we don’t need to be enemies. We don’t need to be friends, either, but we do need to work together. The Ranger-General can’t be a wedge between us.”

“What…what is she like?”

“I’ve only seen her as the Ranger-General. She’s always professional around me, although she relaxes a bit when Lor’themar is around. She’s smart and dedicated. She handles so much as the Ranger-General that she doesn’t seem to have much time for herself. She pushes hard and expects results. That’s why she pulled me away from training with the others: I also push myself hard. Tell me, what do you think she’s like?”

Preston thought for a bit and blushed. “I hadn’t really thought about it. I figured she’d be kind and loving and when she saw how strong I was she’d come to me. I pictured her being all soft and loving and…well…you know…good in bed.”

“Yeah. I know what you mean. I don’t think that’s her, though. She can be kind, and she can be loving—if you’re an elven man named Lor’themar. I just don’t think she’s what you think she is. I think you have an ideal image of her in your head and that’s fine for when you’re in your bunk. You’ll eventually find someone to take her place in your heart. Someone who will return your feelings and then you’ll forget all about the Ranger-General.”

“You think so? These feelings are really strong. I don’t think they’ll ever go away.”

“Yeah. I know it doesn’t seem like it, but they will. This is a one-sided love and love needs two people both loving each other to flourish.”

Preston looked dejected. “But…I love her so much.”

“I know. I also know the pain of loving someone who doesn’t love you. We all go through it in our lives. There’s that one person who is perfect in our heads. We make up fantasies about being with them, and they’re perfect and our life would be so much better if they were part of it. The truth is that the other person isn’t who we think they are. They aren’t the person in our fantasies; they are their own person and we’re left with ashes. You don’t know what the Ranger-General is like in person; you’ve only seen her at a distance. Fantasize about her in your bunk all you want. I’m sure you’re not the first to do so. Just realize that she isn’t for you.”

Tears started tracing a path down Preston’s face. The pain was palpable, and Nathanos wished he could make it vanish.

“I assure you I have no feelings for the Ranger-General. I love someone else. A beautiful lass with auburn hair and hazel eyes. My heart aches when I think of us being apart.”

Preston looked at Nathanos. There was a sad, far-away look in his eyes that hinted at something else, but Preston knew Nathanos was telling the truth.

“You’ll be back with her soon enough.”

Nathanos smiled a sad smile. “True enough.”

There was an awkward moment of silence as both men pondered their thoughts.

“Enough of our love lives,” Nathanos said. “You have a lot of untapped potential as a fighter. You could even be a leader. You’ve been leading the rebels this entire week and doing a good job of it.”

The younger man gave Nathanos a wary look.

“What are you getting at?”

“I need a second in command, and we need to be a unified squad. Enough of this split squad crap. Let’s work together for the next three days as one complete unit and show everyone that we’re not the losers they think we are. Agreed?”

“Agreed!”

The two men shook hands then helped each other up. When they got back to camp, everyone looked at them in shock. Preston had one eye swollen shut, Nathanos had a broken nose, and both men had cut and swollen lips and bruises all over. Perhaps the biggest surprise was that both men were alive.

“Gather round,” Nathanos said. “From now on, Preston is my second in command. If he gives an order, you’re to follow it. We’re one squad not two. We need to finish this exercise and get back. We’re going to be pushing ourselves and we can’t have this squabbling between us. Preston and I hashed out our differences and came to an agreement. Now, lets get some food in our bellies and get some rest. Tomorrow will be a long day.”


	12. Journey's End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The squad makes it back to the Enclave

They started early the next day well rested. They set a fast pace knowing the end was near. As they travelled southward the land became hilly and their pace slowed somewhat. As the slope increased, the trees thinned until there were few trees around.

The flag was easy to see, halfway up a cliff billowing in the breeze. The squad halted for a short break to catch their breath and plan how to collect the flag. Doyle had experience navigating hills and mountains and he was given the task of leading the squad to the flag. He took a careful look at the cliff and found a path to the flag. It was a risky path, so he volunteered to go alone. Nathanos and Preston talked for a moment about it, then agreed to let him go.

It took Doyle a half hour of careful climbing to reach the flag, then another half hour to climb back down. Nathanos greeted him with praise, a canteen of water, and a half hour of rest. The squad seemed to be in much better spirits now that they were united. Nathanos and Preston weren’t friends, but they weren’t enemies anymore, and that made a world of difference.

They set off heading east towards the main road. The journey was peaceful, though they sent out scouts to be sure. They camped within a half hour’s walk from the road, setting up camp quickly and dining on cold venison. Nathanos called Preston over and they discussed their route for the following day. They agreed to take the road north and then eastward toward the Sanctum of the Sun. They should be able to move quickly along the road and make up some time that they lost the previous day. They went to sleep in good spirits.

The next day dawned wet and rainy. Nobody was eager to leave their dry shelters and travel in the rain, but they also wanted to get back to the Enclave, so they broke camp and headed eastward. When they reached the road, they paused and looked southward, toward the gate to Lordaeron. Many felt the pull of friends, of family, of home. Then they looked northward, where their duty was and began the trek back to the Enclave. Though the rain soaked through their cloaks, they remained in good spirits. They may have started these exercises as the worst of the worst, but they came together and improved their skills. They fought creatures and gnolls and came out better for it. The challenges they faced changed them and helped them believe in themselves.

They camped within sight of the Sanctum of the Sun. Once again, they ate cold venison, though they heated up water and made tea to warm themselves. They set a guard and went to sleep secure in the knowledge that they would sleep in their cots tomorrow. They woke the next morning, broke camp and headed eastward once again.

The plan was to head east for an hour, then north to the Enclave. Nathanos knew they had to go carefully because there were trolls nearby in villages near Zul’Aman. They did run into a few trolls, but they quickly dispatched them and continued to the Farstrider Enclave. By late afternoon they saw familiar lands and the spires of the Enclave in the distance, and their pace quickened. When they reached the Enclave, they were laughing and joking, happy to be back at their home away from home.

Nathanos shook Preston’s hand and clapped him on the back, congratulating him for helping to get the squad back in one piece. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Lor’themar hand what looked like a small pouch to Sylvanas, who looked immensely pleased. He turned towards them and saluted.

“Ranger-General, Ranger-Lord, I return my squad none the worse for wear.”

“Thank you, Nathanos Marris,” said Sylvanas. “They look to be in excellent shape after their excursion. You have done well, although you look a little beaten up.”

“Ah…nothing important, Ranger-General.”

“I see. I’ll expect a full report later. After you’ve cleaned up. Dismissed.”

Nathanos saluted, then turned to Preston.

“Preston, dismiss the squad.”

When Preston dismissed the squad, they all cheered and all but ran to their tents. After shedding their equipment, they went to dinner and watched the other squads come straggling in. Nathanos bid farewell to his squad, congratulating them once again and giving them a final salute. He then trotted to the Enclave, ignoring the looks the elves gave him as he passed by. He returned to his room, dropped his gear on the table, and drew a nice, hot bath.

He luxuriated in the hot water letting it take the weariness from the long hike out of him. He sank under the water and winced as the hot water covered his broken nose and bruised face. He washed his hair then rinsed it, letting the water run down his head. When he was finished, the water was filthy, but he felt much better. He got out, dried off, wrapped the towel around his waist, and looked in the mirror. His face was a mess. Even though he had set his nose the day it had been broken, it was still crooked, and his eyes looked like those of a racoon. He had a cut on his lip that was still sore, though it was well on its way to being healed. There was a cut on his cheekbone near his left eye and another bruise on his cheek that was beginning to turn a yellow green. At least he hadn’t lost any teeth, and the result was worth it.

He trimmed his beard and combed his hair, then put on clean clothes. The feel of the clean linen on his clean skin felt wonderful.

“ _These elves are spoiling me. I’m not going to be able to go back to the farm after this.”_

He finished dressing, put his soiled clothes into his hamper and made his way to the Ranger-General’s office as quickly as he could. Windrunner wouldn’t tolerate him taking any more time than necessary. As he approached, he saw an elven woman standing outside the door. She eyed him warily.

“What are you doing here, human?” she demanded.

He inspected her closely. The family resemblance was strong. Her blonde hair identified her as the eldest Windrunner sister: Alleria.

“The Ranger-General ordered me to report here when we got back from our weeklong wilderness training.”

“She’s not here. You’ll have to wait.”

“Yes, Ma’am.” He stood next to the door patiently.

“Are you that human she’s been raving about? The one she’s been training herself?”

“Yes I am. Nathanos Marris.”

He held out a hand in greeting. Alleria just stared at it as if it were a viper.

“Alleria Windrunner. Sylvanas’ sister. You don’t look particularly special.”

Nathanos merely shrugged.

“I agree with you on that. The Ranger-General thinks differently, though.”

Alleria laughed. “She’s always seen things differently. Ah, I believe I hear her now.”

Nathanos heard nothing for a few moments, then he, too, heard the Ranger-General’s voice. As she rounded the curve of the corridor and came into view, he saluted her.

“Ah, Nathanos. I see you’ve met my sister.”

“Yes, Ranger-General. We were just finding common ground.”

Alleria snorted. “Sister, I wanted to update you on the gnolls around the Underlight Mines. There’s been more activity in the area.”

“I see. Nathanos, have you eaten yet?”

“No, Ranger-General.”

“Then go get something to eat and return here in an hour.”

He nodded and went to the canteen. He had managed to get on good terms with the cooks there during his stay, and they cheerfully welcomed him back, making a few remarks about his appearance.

“Ha! Looks like you got up close with a bear!”

“Heh heh…Yeah and the bear actually improved your looks!”

Nathanos chuckled. “Be careful I don’t introduce you to the bear. He’d love to mess up that pretty face of yours!” he growled back at them.

He loaded a plate with food, then returned to his room to eat in solitude. After spending two weeks with an entire squad who had difficulties shutting up, the quiet was nice. He cleared his table off, sat, and savored the food. While they had eaten relatively well, he was tired of spider legs, cattails, and cold venison. He dined on succulent pork ribs, candied sweet potatoes, fresh vegetables, spice bread and freshly churned butter, and he washed it all down with goldthorn tea. When he finished, he sat back for a minute and relaxed.

A knock at his door startled him, and he realized he had fallen asleep. He jumped up and answered the door while rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. Standing there was Sylvanas with a grin on her face.

“I figured I’d come here rather than make you walk even more to come to my office.”

“Thank you. I’m sorry if I’m late. I fell asleep right after eating dinner.”

“You’re not late. Alleria and I had a lot to discuss, then I walked her out and came right here.” She looked at him closer and cocked her head. “You know, when I told you to figure out how to bring Preston into line, I didn’t mean for you two to beat each other up.”

Nathanos grinned and shrugged. “It worked, didn’t it?”

They both laughed for a moment and Sylvanas shook her head. They moved to the table and sat down. Sylvanas brought out a bottle of wine and poured two glasses.

“Seriously, was that your plan? To beat him into submission? That tactic does have its place, but I would have used different methods.”

Nathanos shook his head. “No. I spent the week letting them do their own thing but being supportive when I could. I wore a lot of them down. Preston was jealous that I am getting additional training. I lured him away from the group to try to talk to him. He threw the first punch and we just went at it.” He took a sip of wine. “Nice wine. I wore him down, then we had a long talk.”

“I see. Has a healer seen to your injuries?”

“They aren’t much. I’ve had worse, and even broke my nose before. I put it pretty much back in place and its healing.”

Sylvanas shook her head. “Boys,” was all she said. Nathanos just grinned and looked down.

“So, give me a report. What happened during the week?”

Nathanos gave her a thorough report of the squad’s activities, including his reasoning for various decisions he made, such as where to camp and who to trust. She made some comments, gave some compliments, and gave advice where appropriate. He nodded and asked questions when he needed clarification. A couple of hours later, Sylvanas stood, finished her wine, and pulled a small pouch from her belt.

“This is for you. Lor’themar and I made a small bet. He didn’t think you’d be able to pull the squad together and get them through the exercise.” She smiled as she dropped the pouch on the table. “He was wrong. He hates being wrong.”

“He hates me, too,” Nathanos said as he picked up the pouch and looked inside. He inhaled sharply in surprise.

“ _Small bet? There’s several years income from the farm in here!”_

“I…this…I mean…”

“Is there a problem?”

“This is a lot of coin. There’s gold in here! Are you sure…”

Sylvanas laughed. “You earned it. If you feel guilty you could share it with the squad. I assure you I won’t miss the coin.”

“Thank you. I didn’t do it for any coin, though.”

“I know. That’s just an extra reward for a job well done. You took the worst of the volunteers and turned them into a functional squad. They didn’t believe in themselves. You changed that.”

“Thank you.”

“Take the next couple of days off to rest. When we start training again, things are going to be tougher.”

“Yes, Ma’am. Good night.”

“Good night, Nathanos.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a short chapter. I wanted to put an end to the beginning of the training and figured this was a good spot.


	13. Taking Leave

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Training winds down and Nathanos has a decision looming in front of him. Also, the friendship between Nathanos and Sylvanas starts to gain ground.

Sylvanas wasn’t kidding when she said things were going to get tougher. In private she spoke to him only in Thalassian. She showed him how to get around shields and pushed him harder and faster in weapons training. In private she consulted with him on strategies to defeat the gnoll invasion that had started when he was leading the squad in the wilderness training. She quickly found that he was an excellent strategist. As fall approached, she put him in charge of one of the human squads. Given his choice of any of the squads, he chose the squad he led during the wilderness exercise.

The squad had matured somewhat since the exercise. They learned the value of practicing what they were taught, and their weapon skills were improving. Preston had worked on his leadership skills and Nathanos leaned on those skills a lot. They spent more time in the wilderness, learning how to track and how to effectively fight in the woods.

As the fall harvest approached, the training ended, and several of the humans received the option to continue training the following year. Nathanos was proud to note that most of his squad received those invitations. They packed up their belongings and headed south, to their homes. Nathanos said his farewells, shaking Preston’s hand as they parted ways.

“Not leaving with us?” Preston asked.

“I’ve been asked to stay another day or two. The Ranger-General wants to finish up a few lessons.”

“Eager to see that beautiful lass of yours again?”

Nathanos smiled. “Been thinking about her for weeks, now. You coming back next year?”

“Yeah. Watching you made me realize I have a lot to learn. Are you coming back?”

Nathanos paused for a moment. “Haven’t made up my mind. I need to talk about it with my parents.”

“Well I think you should. This is what you were meant to do.” Preston looked up as someone whistled. “Looks like they’re kicking us out now. You take care of yourself.”

“You too. Keep practicing everything they taught you or I’ll hunt you down and beat you!”

“Ha! As if you could…”

Nathanos watched as his squad left, not quite melding into the woods.

The Enclave grounds grew silent as the humans left. Nathanos walked the grounds where, just a few months ago, he had been a foolish human trying to learn Quel’dorei ways. He had absorbed a lot of skills in the time he had been here, and had even made some friends, human and elf alike. He saw Lor’themar and walked over to him.

“Look, I was an ass when I first got here…”

“You think that’s changed?”

“Well…I’m still an ass, but I can admit when I was wrong. That day when you turned your back to me, well…I took advantage of the situation. Technically, I was right to do so, but it was an ass move. I shouldn’t have done it.”

Lor’themar raised an eyebrow. “Sylvanas _is_ getting through to you. You’re becoming civilized. As much as a human _can_ become civilized.”

“Believe me, I’ve been fighting it.”

There was a moment of silence, then both men laughed.

“At least she’s got you bathing and using soap.”

“I’ll admit, after a long hard day it does feel good to soak the soreness out. I’ll need to talk to your builders and engineers about putting one of those tubs into my family’s farmhouse. My mother will love it. Probably never get her out.”

There was an awkward silence as the two men regarded each other.

“If you’ll excuse me, Ranger-Lord, I need to go pack my things and prepare for my own trip home.”

“Of course. I believe Sylvanas mentioned wanting to see you in her office this afternoon, right after lunch.”

“Thank you, Ranger-Lord.”

With that Nathanos returned to his room and began packing. He had managed to add to his belongings during his stay. He had new clothing, though he kept his older clothes for wearing at home while working. He had new weapons: a bow and a quiver full of arrows, and two axes, one of which was taken from the spiders. He also had leather armor which still felt awkward to wear. Lastly were his books and maps. Sylvanas had given him several books in both common and Thalassian, along with a couple of maps of both Quel’thalas and Lordaeron.

“ _Should I come back next year?”_ he mused. “ _I do seem to have a talent for this, and I_ do _enjoy it. Father won’t like it, though. I will inherit the farm when he dies, and I can’t be running all over Lordaeron pretending to be a human ‘ranger.’ It can’t hurt to be trained further, though. I already know how to run the farm, and one more year of training won’t ruin the farm. Perhaps I can make more money from looting gnoll and troll corpses. I made quite a bit this year that I’m going to give to them, and that should help Father realize this is a good thing.”_

He was not looking forward to that conversation. Still, he was learning skills that would be useful when he took over running the farm. He had learned how to read much more than a few, farm specific words, and his math skills were much better. Maybe his father would agree. His mother, though…he knew she hated him being so far away and would hate it next year. The feeling was mutual, though. He missed seeing his family and was eager to get back.

A bird trilling outside his window broke him out of his thoughts. He stood, stretched, and prepared to join Sylvanas. He knew she was taking him into the woods, so he put his axes on his belt and grabbed his bow and quiver. He liked being with her; she pushed him to his limits but not too far over them. She also treated him as more than the farmer he was, and he liked it. It was an escape from reality, he knew, but it was nice all the same.

He stepped into the hallway pulling the door shut behind him. There were a lot of Farstriders running about today. He had become friends with some of them, but most of them viewed him as an intruder to their sanctum. He didn’t care; he wasn’t a Farstrider, wasn’t going to be a Farstrider, and didn’t have to spend a lot of time with them. As he jogged down the corridor he smiled and nodded to his friends and ignored those who weren’t.

As promised, Sylvanas took him out to the forest. She tested him on his tracking skills and ability to move quickly through the woods. He managed to find evidence of elves moving through the woods based on a footprint, a spot of moss that had been brushed off a log, and broken twigs on branches. He wasn’t as graceful as Sylvanas, but he had made a lot of progress. She smiled.

“ _I am a great trainer if I do say so. It’s a pity he’s not Quel’dorei; he might have given Lor’themar a challenge for Ranger-Lord.”_

She pulled an apple from a bag tied to her belt and threw it. “Hit it,” she ordered.

He nocked and arrow, drew back on the string, sighted the apple while reaching his anchor point, and loosed it in the space of a breath. They watched as the arrow flew and split the apple in two. Sylvanas walked to the apple pieces and picked them up along with the arrow and gave the arrow and an apple half to Nathanos.

“Well done. I remember a few months ago when you were barely hitting the target. Now you’re shooting apples out of the sky.” She laughed. “You’ve come a long way in a short time.”

“Thank you. I have enjoyed learning from you.”

“What are your plans for the future? Will you return next spring?”

“I hadn’t made up my mind. I need to talk to my parents about it.”

“You should return. There is so much more for you to learn. You are a hunter –”

“I am a farmer, nothing more.”

A look of irritation crossed her face. “You are so much more than that! You have flourished under my training. You can hold a conversation in two languages, you are fighting with two axes, and you are an excellent tactician. You would make an excellent hunter, serving Lordaeron –”

“I. Am. A. Farmer. That is the life I was born to. That is the life I will return to, no matter how much training I get. I appreciate everything you are doing. My lot in life is to become a farmer, like my father and his father before him, going back generations. The farm has been in my family for generations. I will eventually go back, marry, have children, and pass the farm on to my children. That is the reality of life in Lordaeron.”

“It doesn’t need to be that way. You could start a human counterpart to the Farstriders. You could start with your squad and expand. You could –”

“Not in Lordaeron! It’s nice and all that King Terenas allowed us to come here and train, but he doesn’t understand. He’s locked away in Capitol City with his nobles. He takes for granted the food that’s put on his table, and the clothes he wears. We can’t do that! We have our places and we must respect that or else everything falls apart. None of my peers _wants_ to farm. They want to be so much more, but someone has to raise the crops that feeds the kingdom and raise and shear the sheep, so they have wool to make clothes.”

“There are people who want to do that…” she replied, somewhat taken aback.

“Not once they see how hard it is. Oh, poets and bards make it sound so romantic, staring out over a field of wheat admiring the sunset, but the truth is you get up before the sun rises, take care of the livestock, spend all day working mending fences or digging up weeds then finally getting to eat dinner well after the sun sets. It’s hard work for little reward. Nobody wants to do that.” He shouted that last, hands balled up into fists.

Sylvanas put a hand on his shoulder. “What does your heart want you to do?”

“I don’t know. I want to learn more, but I want to be with my family, too.”

“You miss them, don’t you?”

In a small voice he said “Yes.”

“Can you be ready to leave in the morning?”

He nodded.

“I’ll have a hawkstrider ready for you. I’ll ride with you to the gate. It should only take a couple of days to reach it.”

“Thank you.”

The walk back to the Enclave was silent.

“ _He is torn. He’d make one of the best human hunters in history, but humans are so tradition bound. I need to figure out a way to get around that. He needs to be set free from this insistence that he’s a farmer.”_

She looked at him out of the corner of her eye. He was very conflicted; he saw a way out of the dull existence of being a farmer but was afraid to take it. She had to figure out a way to get him to take it, but how. Why was he _really_ here?

They reached the Enclave and she invited him to dine with her and Lor’themar on the lakeshore. They ate a fine dinner and talked about many things. Nathanos and Lor’themar were polite to each other; Sylvanas would have it no other way. When they finished, they went to their respective rooms, and slept well.

The morning came early, as it always does. Sylvanas rose, dressed, gave a still sleeping Lor’themar a kiss on the forehead, and left. She reached the steps of the Enclave a few moments later with a package in her hands. Nathanos appeared a few moments later.

“I want you to have this,” she said as she gave him the package.

He unwrapped the package and held a beautiful bow of black wood inlaid with gold wire. Along with the bow was an intricately carved quiver. The arrows were made of a black wood with white fletching.

“You told me you didn’t have an heirloom sword sitting at home. Since you don’t seem to like using swords, I decided to give you this instead. My only request is that you teach your children to use it and let it become your family heirloom.”

“Thank you, Sylvanas. I will put it to good use.”

They walked up to two hawkstriders that had been saddled and outfitted for their trip. Sylvanas leapt nimbly into the saddle and took control of the bird. Nathanos warily approached his bird and clambered into the saddle. He looked nervous and clutched the reins tightly. When he was ready, he nodded, and they headed for the gate.

The ride south was pleasant. Sylvanas pointed out many things about her homeland as they rode. Late in the afternoon they stopped at the Sanctum of the Sun for the night. The birds were taken away once they had dismounted, and Sylvanas smiled as Nathanos hobbled inside. Clearly, he wasn’t used to riding.

The next day they continued, taking the road west, then south. They reached the gate by noon. Their mood was more somber, and both were wrapped in their thoughts. When they reached the gate, they dismounted and shared one last lunch together.

“We have a horse you can ride from here. You looked rather uncomfortable on the hawkstrider.”

“Thank you, again. That will be much better.”

He mounted the horse and looked at the gate, then back to Quel’thalas.

“ _He looks sad to be leaving,”_ Sylvanas noted.

“The offer for more training is an open offer. Even if you don’t come back next year, or the year after, you will always be welcome here. I enjoyed teaching you and even learned some things from you.”

He grinned. “Like what?”

“Well, humans don’t stink so much when they bathe.”

They laughed, then said their goodbyes. He turned his horse to the south and rode through the gate. She sat and watched him until she couldn’t see him anymore.

“ _I never thought I’d get to know a human as well as him. Even so, he’s still a large mystery. What a strange year this has been.”_

With that, she mounted her bird and headed north. With the last of the human volunteers finally gone, things could get back to normal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was going to be different, but wound up being what I wanted last chapter to be. This ends this year of training for the humans. Nathanos has a decision to make.


	14. Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nathanos spends the winter at home and makes a big decision

Nathanos rode southward enjoying the solitude; for the first time in months he was completely alone. He noticed his surroundings with a clarity he hadn’t had on his trip north. He smelled the rich earthy smell of freshly harvested fields; saw the mice moving through the fields gleaning the grains that were left behind. Unlike Quel’thalas, the seasons changed here. Fall was beginning and the trees were changing from green to orange, red, and yellow. There was an urgency in nature to prepare for the cold of winter.

Nathanos was glad to have the coin that allowed him to stay at inns on his way home; nights were getting cooler and less hospitable to travelers forced to stay outside. He spent the night at Northwatch Tower, then at Corin’s Crossing late the next day. He pushed hard to get home on the third day so he could see his family once more. As he began to see familiar landmarks his heart soared. He waved to his neighbors as he rode past and burst out in joyful laughter when he first spotted his family home sitting on the hill.

“Father! Mother! I’m home!” he cried out as he rode into the yard.

His mother came running out of the house, her arms open wide to embrace her son. He wrapped her in his arms and lifted her up off the ground in an enormous embrace that lasted a long time. When they broke apart, he held her at arm’s length looking at her. Her hair had hints of grey but was still mostly the same auburn hair that he had. Her blue eyes twinkled with joy and her smile etched the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes even deeper.

“You’ve grown a beard! It looks like you’ve filled out some too. Good to know there was _some_ decent food for you to eat there.”

“You’d be surprised. They have good food there. Not your cooking, but it was edible. I didn’t even have to cook my own food.”

“Good thing, too! You’d have starved to death!”

They laughed at that and hugged once more.

“Nathanos! Son!” came a call from near the barn.

Nathanos broke the embrace and turned to see his father approaching. He jogged over to his father and grasped his hand, pulling him into an embrace. They slapped each other on the back, then separated. His father was the same height, with black hair and deep blue eyes.

“You look good. We missed you.”

Nathanos looked down, then back up at his father’s face. “I missed you too.”

“You just missed the harvest, though we still have to sell the crops and slaughter the livestock.”

“I’m not sorry I missed the harvest. I’ll be ready when we take the crops to market, though. They taught me numbers and reading so I can do the books over the winter.”

“Numbers? Reading? What sort of fighting do they _do_ up there?”

Nathanos laughed. “Their Ranger General thinks I’d make a good leader. Apparently, I need to read and do math to do that.”

“Huh. Always knew you had it in you. Come in, get a cool drink and tell us all about it.”

As they walked to the house, Nathanos started taking his equipment off his horse to take inside. His father whistled.

“Nice horse. Not useful to pull a plow, but nice all the same. They give this to you?”

“I’m not sure. They gave him to me for the trip home but said nothing about how they would get him back. If they don’t send someone to get him, I’ll take him back in the spring.”

His father nodded, then looked at Nathanos’ bow.

“You going to take that back, too? That’s a beautiful weapon there.”

Nathanos smiled. “No, this was given to me by Ranger-General Sylvanas Windrunner. She told me to use it well and to teach my children to use it.”

His father stared at him, mouth agape. “Looks like she fancies you. Are there going to be half-elven children in your future?”

Nathanos chuckled. “No. She’s pretty and all that, but I’m not interested. Besides, she has a lover and they seem incredibly happy together. I was only her student.”

His father grunted. “If you say so. Go put your things away and come eat dinner. You know how your mother is about serving dinner.”

Nathanos laughed and nodded his head. “I’ll be in shortly.”

After taking care of the horse, he grabbed his things and took them to his room. As he entered, he sighed. It was tiny compared to his room in the Enclave. He still loved it because it was home. He dropped his things in the corner of the room, grabbed two packages out of his knapsack, and headed downstairs to dinner. When he got to the table, he placed one package on his mother’s plate and one on his father’s plate.

“What’s this?” his mother asked.

“Presents for you.”

“You didn’t have to…”

“Maybe not, but I wanted to.”

They opened their presents. His mother exclaimed in delight as she took several soap bars from the wrapping. She sniffed each one several times, enjoying the floral scents. His father opened his package and found a pipe and several bags of tobacco inside. He smiled appreciatively and sniffed the tobacco.

“I had the chance to visit Silvermoon with the Ranger-General. Oh, you should see Silvermoon! The spires reach to the sky with their red and gold decorations. It’s so beautiful! While I was there, I saw a soap merchant and knew you would love some scented soaps. Father, I knew your pipe was almost ruined, so I found another and several different tobaccos. One is from Tirisfal, another from Arathi, and the third is all the way from Westfall.”

“Thank you so very much,” his mother said with tears of joy in her eyes.

“There’s one more thing,” he said as he pulled a pouch from his belt. It clinked as it hit the table.

“What’s this?” his father asked as he picked it up. His eyes widened and he inhaled sharply as he looked inside. “Where did you get this?”

“We fought gnolls and trolls that we were able to loot once they were dead. We took their weapons that we sold to smiths to use for scrap. We killed creatures that had killed other beings and there was treasure to loot.”

“Th-that’s a lot of money. You should keep some for yourself.”

Nathanos grinned. “I have.”

“Son, don’t you get all spoiled on us. This is more money than we’ll earn selling at the market, and for a lot less work. Somebody worked hard for this coin, and they paid for it with their lives.”

“Father, I know all of that. It wasn’t easy, either. I’ve spent all day, every day learning and practicing with weapons to be able to have a chance against those beasts. At any moment I could have been killed, or worse, crippled. I know that these coins were once someone’s livelihood. I know that the weapons and trinkets we found were once someone’s prized possessions. Each time I take something, I give a silent thanks to whomever died. It’s like killing livestock. They give their lives so we can continue to live. They would rather live, but in the grand scheme of things, they die so we can eat.”

There was silence for a few moments as everyone pondered what was said.

“Both of you, stop it. My boy is home and has had a great summer,” she said as she took the leather pouch out of her husband’s hand and put the coins back inside it. “Let us celebrate that. Papa, go get that brew from last summer and we’ll listen while Nathanos tells us all about the elves.”

They spent half of the night listening to Nathanos’ stories glad to have him home.

The next few weeks were busy. Nathanos settled back into his former routine, helping get the crops to market and tending the livestock. It felt good to be back. He found time to practice his weapon skills as well, much to his parents’ amusement. Nathanos also spent time thinking about returning for more training. He was torn, while at the Enclave and in the forests surrounding it, he felt truly alive. He was most comfortable here, though. This was home and this was where his family was.

“Son, what’s troubling you? There’s been something bothering you since you got here.”

Nathanos paused throwing hay into the loft and furrowed his brow.

“Father…I…I wanted to make my mind up before telling you…”

“Tell me what?” his father asked apprehensively.

“I’ve been asked to return to Quel’Thalas for more training.”

“I see. You haven’t made up your mind yet. I don’t want you to go. You need to stay here and learn how to run the farm once I’m gone. I won’t be here forever.”

“There is still time. I can take what I’m learning and teach some of it to the farm hands so we’re better protected. Plus, they’re teaching me so much more than just weapon skills. I’m learning to read and write. I’m learning to do math. I’m learning how to predict the weather by watching the skies and animals. All of that will be used to run the farm better.”

“I see. I remember being your age. I remember how boring I thought farming was. I remember dreaming about chasing after monsters and killing them. Yeah, we had attacks from wild creatures and gnolls. We fought them off and kept going, and that excitement showed me the truth about my fantasies. You think it’s no big deal to run off for the summer, train and play at being a big fighter with the elves. There’s work to be done here. Crops that need planting. Winter wheat to be harvested. Livestock to be tended. We need everyone we can get. With you gone, I need to hire more men. I need you, son.”

“I made more money in one summer than you make all year! I can pay for the extra men.”

“You want to do this for the money?”

“No. The extra money is nice, but that’s not why I want to do this. I’m leaning a lot there. They even let me lead a squad using the skills I’ve learned.”

“Ah, so you want to be the big man, lording over others?”

“You know me better than that! The leadership skills I’m learning will help me here, with the hired hands.”

“You can learn all that here.”

Nathanos sighed. The words he needed just wouldn’t come to his mind. He had hoped to have this discussion when his thoughts were more organized.

“I…I _like_ what they’re teaching me. I like studying tactics, and shooting a bow, and tracking through the woods, and learning to survive out there. I know I have a duty here and to the family. I _do_ like being here and tending to the farm, but I like the other stuff too. If I could do both I would, but I have to choose one or the other and it just …”

Nathanos found himself wrapped in his father’s arms.

“Son, I want you to stay here, but if you leave, you’ll have my blessings. I just want you to make your choice for the right reasons. We need you here; we can’t just replace you with a few hired hands. I don’t want you regretting having to stay here, though. I want you to be happy.”

“Thanks, father. This is a hard decision. I feel so torn.”

“You still have time. Now, let’s finish getting this hay into the loft. Oh, and _you_ are the one telling your mother if you decide to leave.”

The fall quickly turned to winter. Nathanos surprised his parents by taking them to Stratholme for Winter Veil; something they had wanted to do for as long as he could remember. They marveled at the festive lights and decorated trees. Nathanos helped find a stolen reindeer and brought it back home. They bought a Smokywood Pastures sampler and ate all sorts of Winter Veil foods. They ended their stay by visiting Great Father Winter and receiving a present from him. They were sad when the end of the trip came but were glad to be going home.

Nathanos wrestled with his decision. His sense of duty fought with his desires. He knew his family would be safe and would have enough workers to run the farm. Once the fields were plowed and the seeds planted there wasn’t much to do, other than tend the animals. Most of them were put out to pasture to forage. Fences need repairing and equipment needed mending. Chicken nests needed to be checked for eggs and cows needed milking. A few good workers could handle all of that. Still, he needed to be there to learn how to actually run the farm: how to schedule the buying of seed and the actual planting, how to manage which livestock to sell and which to slaughter, how many workers to hire and when. It wasn’t easy and he _did_ need to learn all of it.

There was still a strong pull to return to Sylvanas and her teaching. His heart soared as he ran through the forest. He felt a sense of _belonging_ there. He felt calm sitting in the wilds listening to nature. There was so much more he needed to learn.

“ _Perhaps there is some sort of compromise that could be made,”_ he thought. “ _Not this year, perhaps, but in the future…”_

The winter soon showed signs of melting into spring. The snow vanished and the breeze brought the first hints of warm air. Soon the fields would be plowed and tilled, and the crops that would grow over the summer would be planted. Men and women seeking work started showing up and Nathanos knew he would have to make his mind up soon. He half dreaded making that decision. There was work to do first.

He helped plow the fields and get them ready for planting. He loved the smell of the rich, black soil as it was turned under the plow. The horses pulled the plow in a slow, steady pace row after row as he guided them through the fields. Once the land was ready, he went back out and seeded the land with his father and the hired hands. He was tired at the end of the day, and longed for a hot bath, though such a thing wasn’t available here.

When he sat down for dinner, he was ready to tell his parents his decision. He was nervous and dreading the moment, but he had to tell them.

“Mother, Father, I am going back to Quel’Thalas. The fields are planted, and the summer work can be taken care of by the hired hands.”

There was silence at the table. His parents just looked at him, sadness in their eyes. His father nodded in acknowledgement; his mother had tears in her eyes.

“I expected you to choose that,” his father said. “We’re going to miss you. When are you leaving?”

“I-I was thinking of going at the start of next week. That’ll give us time to finish up the planting and get the livestock out to the pastures.”

“So soon?” his mother asked.

He ducked his head so she wouldn’t see the tears in his eyes. “Yeah. The sooner I get there, the sooner I’ll be back.”

The week went by far too quickly. Things were slowing down for the farm; crops were planted, and the livestock moved to the pastures. Nathanos packed the gear he would need, making sure to pack the clothes Sylvanas had given him. She wouldn’t let him live down wearing his farm clothes. The night before he left his family gave him a festive dinner. Roast beef, fresh spring vegetables, and a cake his mother baked using spices bought in Stratholme. His father sat back and lit the pipe Nathanos gave him, using the Westfall tobacco. Nathanos noticed the bag was getting low and made a note to get more for him. The next morning, he saddled the horse the elves had given him, hugged both of his parents for a long time, said his farewells, and left.


	15. Year Two Begins

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A new year begins. Some students return from the previous year along with a new class.

Sylvanas stretched and rose from bed. Reports from the field told her that the second wave of human volunteers would arrive today, and she wanted to see just how bad these would be. Somehow the Quel’dorei had managed to train the last batch of humans, which gave her hope for this batch. Some of the previous batch had returned for more training; they would be used to help train the new batch. So many logistics that had to be dealt with; it was enough to give her a headache.

“Do you think _he’ll_ be back?” Lor’themar asked as he wrapped his arms around her from behind and nuzzled her neck.

Sylvanas leaned back into her lover’s embrace and wrapped her arms around his. “I don’t know. For as blunt as he is, he’s hard to read. He has a strong sense of duty, and his duty is to his parents. Still, I sensed a strong yearning in him: a desire to be more than just a farmer.”

“Why bother with him? Last year he came to us. You invited him back. Why?”

“Because there’s so much more to him than just farming. He can be a great asset to us. He’ll never be a Farstrider because he’s not Quel’dorei, but he’s already surpassed some of the Farstriders. I’m also curious to see just how far he can go.”

“I see. He’s a challenge, and you love challenges.”

Sylvanas laughed. “You know me so well, my love. Now, I don’t think the humans would quite appreciate seeing you naked the way I do. Let’s get dressed and go look at this new batch.”

“You take _all_ the fun out of it, my dear.”

Later that morning they arrived at the human encampment. Though the bulk of the humans hadn’t arrived yet, a few were there figuring out who they were sharing tents with and getting to know each other. Several of the humans from the previous year were there, catching up on each other’s activities over the winter. When they saw Sylvanas and Lor’themar, they stood and saluted. Sylvanas recognized several humans from Nathanos’ squad.

“ _He sparked something in them that made them want to come back for more,”_ she mused to herself.

They spent the morning getting to know the new volunteers and refreshing their knowledge of those who had returned. They had an impromptu archery contest with the older students and a few of the younger ones. Sylvanas offered some tips to all of them, then showed off her skills with the bow.

“ _I didn’t spend enough time with them last year. A little more diplomacy this year would be good.”_

At lunchtime, she and Lor’themar went back to the Enclave for lunch and some paperwork that needed to be done. Rangers were busy preparing for the humans. They understood their mission a little better now and expected that things would go smoother this year. As she sat in her office a scout entered and informed her that a large group of humans were approaching. She thanked him and went to the training grounds.

She got there in time to see a large group of humans trying their best to march in step up to the training grounds. Preston, Norwin, and Anselme were keeping them in line, and leading them, seated on a large hawkstrider with pink and purple plumage sat Nathanos Marris.

“You made it and I see you brought some friends with you.”

He dismounted awkwardly muttering about how he hated the bird, then turned and saluted. “I ran into them on the way here, Ranger-General. I figured that between the four of us we’d get them here in one piece.”

She smiled. “I see that you did exactly that. Congratulations. Your room has been prepared for you.” She wrinkled her nose. “I’ll assume you’d like to tidy up and eat. Your official training starts tomorrow.”

He grinned at her expression and saluted her. “As you command, Ranger-General,” he replied, then picked up his belongings and ran to the Enclave.

“As for the rest of you,” she addressed the remaining volunteers, “Welcome. I am Ranger-General Sylvanas Windrunner. This is Ranger-Lord Lor’themar Theron. We will be leading your training, though most of the training will be done by other Rangers. We have plenty of tents for you. You’ll need to share a tent. This will help you get to know your fellow students better. We start early in the morning and stop in the evening. You will be fed three meals a day. You will learn how to shoot a bow and use a sword. If you’d like to learn other weapons, like Nathanos and his axes,” she said while pointing at the retreating form, “we have trainers who will help you in your off time. Those who are returning, you will have the luxury of having your own tents this year. Your training will be more intense, though. Go choose your tents and tent mates, then get some food. The rest of the day is yours to do with as you please.”

The group dispersed and went to find the tents that they liked. Sylvanas watched for a moment, then turned to Lor’themar.

“That went better than last year, I think.”

“It was nice of Marris to round them all up for us. I remember several of them who got lost last year. Maybe we should construct a road to the enclave.”

“Never! It’s more fun to watch them struggle to find their way through the woods.”

They laughed at that, then headed back to the Enclave.

“Now that we’ve seen the humans arrive, can we get undressed again? I believe you said you appreciate me naked.”

Sylvanas arched one eyebrow. “Come to think of it, I just remembered some “special duties” I want you to do…”

Sylvanas put Nathanos in charge of the second-year students. He would relay orders from the Rangers to the humans, and report on their progress. He would also train the second years in more advanced wilderness survival skills, tracking, and basic tactics. In between all of this, he was to train with Sylvanas.

The new humans were to be split into squads and each squad was assigned leaders from the second-year students. These leaders would be responsible for getting their squads to their training areas, finding out who the weaker students were and getting them extra training, and generally helping their squads. Each squad was given a training assignment for the morning and another for the afternoon. One squad would learn to shoot a bow while another would start learning hand to hand combat and a third would begin to learn survival skills.

“ _It’s a good plan if a bit complex. The fun will start when we put it into action and all the pieces start moving. It will be a real test for Marris. If he needs help, I’ll be there, but he has to ask for it.”_

Getting all the new volunteers to their squads, introduced to the squad leaders, and to the correct area for training was a struggle, but somehow it happened with a minimum of chaos. Sylvanas gave Nathanos orders first thing in the morning, then watched as he distributed them to the second-year students. He gave them lists of which volunteers would be with which squad leaders and helped them group up, then march off to their respective training areas.

“ _His old squad is cooperating with him. The others are resisting. I wonder if one of them will give him another broken nose.”_ She smiled at the thought. “ _He’d probably enjoy it. Humans.”_

The rest of the day went as well as expected. A few of the new class knew how to shoot a bow, though not well. Some of them could fight unarmed, though they often swung wildly. A couple could make a crude lean-to. The older class was a bit more problematic. Those students who weren’t in Marris’ squad remembered him as an unpleasant jerk who got special privileges last year. Of course, his entire squad thought the same thing before he led them through the woods.

_“He won them over, even Preston. Let’s see how he handles the others. He must be careful, though. The others will be influencing the newcomers. If he takes too long to win them over, there will be trouble.”_

She returned to her office for the rest of the morning. Somehow there were always reports to be read and Rangers to be sent to all corners of Quel’thalas. She was in the middle of one report when there was a knock on her door.

“Come.”

“I brought your lunch,” Nathanos said, balancing a tray on one arm. Sylvanas’ stomach rumbled as she smelled the fresh bread on the tray.

“Not eating with the others? I thought you’d want to catch up with them.”

“I talked with several of them on the way here yesterday. I can get with the rest of them later.”

Sylvanas looked at the tray of food. Cheese, meat, bread, butter, fresh fruit, and wine. It was a splendid lunch, but there was more than she could finish by herself.

“Please, join me. I want to hear how your winter went.”

He told her all about his time at home. She was enthralled at his descriptions of everyday events; they showed her a world she had never seen before. She saw the love he had for his family and she thought about her own family. Talk turned towards what she expected of him this year and a rough schedule of what he would be learning.

“You are starting out learning how to deal with people. That’s probably your weakest point. I’ll also be teaching you some special shots and skills that hunters use. Yes, I know you’re a farmer. It won’t hurt to learn some hunter skills as well. Later this summer I’ll have you join some Farstrider patrols. You’ll continue your studies in Thalassian as well. You’re doing well, though I notice some hesitation occasionally. I don’t imagine you had a lot of opportunity to speak the language at home.”

He smiled. “No, I didn’t. That sounds like a pretty hectic schedule.”

“You don’t think you can handle it?” she asked with a twinkle in her eye.

“Heh. Watch me.”

The confidence in his voice amused her. It was easy to say he could handle the schedule, another completely to do it. Still, she knew he would push himself, which she wanted. She wanted to see just how far he could go before he broke.

_“He had a slip last year with the gnolls. Will that be a recurring thing? I have to find out.”_

“There is one other matter I want to discuss with you. The trolls have started moving around, after being stationary last year. It may mean something, it may not. I’d like your opinion on it.”

They walked over to a map with red and blue markers on it.

“Here are the most recent reports of where the trolls are,” she said as she pointed to the blue pieces. “They started here, then moved out from there. So far, it’s only been small groups that were easily taken care of.”

“I see. It reminds me of the tales from your grand – no, great-grandmother’s time. The trolls made some small incursions into Quel’thalas to test the defenses. When they found what they thought was a weakness, they sent their forces pouring into that spot. Could this be the same thing?”

“I see you remembered your studies. That was what we were thinking too. We’ve increased patrols in that area and you volunteers won’t be going in that area. Any wilderness training will be north of the road to Windrunner Spire.”

“Good idea. Whatever the trolls are doing, we don’t want people who don’t know what they’re doing stumbling around there. We had enough trouble with those gnolls last year.”

“Exactly.” She paused and looked out the window. “We’ve spent the entire afternoon talking. You need to go get the reports from the second years and condense them into one report. Hand it to Halduron when you are done. You remember who he is?”

“Yes, I do.”

“Good. Oh, and take the tray back to the canteen on your way out.”

She got a report from Halduron a few hours earlier. It was about what she expected for a first day. The new humans were eager to learn how to fight, the second years were glad to be back and shaking the rust off their skills. She made a few notes to give to Nathanos in the morning then got up, stretched, and retired to her rooms for the night.

Lor’themar was waiting for her with dinner. She smiled, went up to him and kissed him deeply.

“You spent a long time with Marris,” he said sternly, but the grin on his face undercut his tone.

“Jealous?” she replied with a smile.

“Always. I don’t want to see you in anyone else’s arms. Especially _his._ ”

“You don’t have to worry about _that._ Kael, maybe, but not him.”

“Ugh. That’s almost as bad. Besides, you turned him down before.”

“That would have been a political marriage only,” she mused. “He wanted a pretty on his arm who had ‘good bloodlines’ and I wanted to be an active Ranger out in the forests.”

“Maybe he’ll meet someone in Dalaran.”

Sylvanas laughed. “He would be good with a mage. They’d have a lot in common.”

They finished their dinner and went to the living area to relax. They both chose to read for a while; Sylvanas reading a history of trolls and Lor’themar reading a book of poetry. After a while, Sylvanas got up and took her bath, then rejoined Lor’themar in the bedroom. They hugged and kissed each other for a while, then Lor’themar went and took his bath while Sylvanas brushed her hair and got into bed. He joined her shortly and wrapped his arms around her. He nuzzled her ear affectionately and she smiled with her eyes closed.

“I love you, Syl,” he whispered in her ear.

“I love you too, Lor.”

She drifted off to sleep snuggled against her lover's chest.


	16. A Pleasant Interlude

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sylvanas takes Nathanos into the hills to teach him survival techniques there.

Things quickly settled down into routine. The new humans progressed better than their predecessors in part because the elves knew what to expect and had improved their techniques, and partly because of the older humans’ help. Communication was awkward; most of the older students worked with Nathanos begrudgingly. Halduron himself didn’t like Nathanos but gave him his orders in the morning and took his reports in the afternoon without incident.

Nathanos was kept busy. He figured out that holding staff meetings in the morning and afternoon was the best way to distribute orders, get reports, and work with the others making plans to help the new volunteers learn their lessons. In the mornings he worked with his peers teaching them advanced survival skills, tracking, and tactics. His favorite way of teaching tactics was to split the group into two groups and play capture the flag. He watched each team plan how to capture the other team’s flag while protecting their own flag, then watched them enact their plans. Afterward, they grouped up over lunch and discussed what worked and what didn’t work.

Sylvanas watched as he became less awkward around the others. He was gruff and set an extremely high bar for everyone. As they earned his respect though, his tone softened. She noticed a similar effect with his interactions with the Farstriders: as he got to know them, he showed them more respect.

“ _He did the same with me,” she ‘mused. “I didn’t notice it at first, though. He showed me respect due to my rank but didn’t respect_ me _until he saw how good I really was.”_

His afternoons were devoted to his own training. Sylvanas started off discussing tactics with him, giving him various situations and having him figure out what to do next. His evenings were spent studying and analyzing past battles, figuring out why the victor won, and suggesting possible tactics the losers could have used to win the battle. At the end of the week he had to submit a report in writing of his analysis.

“ _He has a remarkable mind for analyzing a situation. I wonder how he’ll handle situations as they happen,”_ Sylvanas pondered.

After discussing tactics, she took him out to the archery targets and they both practiced their archery. She could tell he had practiced over the winter; his shots were consistent, his form was very good, and he was pulling to the same anchor point every time.

“ _A vast improvement from a year ago. He’s also a lot steadier with the drawn bow, even though this bow is heavier.”_

She started teaching him special shots, unique to Hunters. He seemed clumsy when attempting them. Sylvanas knew that he would work on them until he could do them flawlessly, but it was refreshing to see him do poorly at something.

“ _I’m taking far too much pleasure at seeing him falter,”_ she thought to herself. “ _Still, he’s picking up on these techniques well.”_

They also spent a lot of time in the forest, learning how to move faster through the trees, tracking a wider variety of creatures, and advanced survival techniques. The pair also started going to the Sungraze Peak mountains to the west of the Enclave. Sylvanas taught him survival in more mountainous areas, comparing and contrasting survival in the woods to survival in the hills. Quite often they took multi-day trips so he could get more extensive experience moving through the terrain. Later in the summer Sylvanas planned to have mages teleport them somewhere in Quel’thalas and they would have to find their way back.

The first outing was a short, three-day excursion. They were lightly equipped: bows and arrows, knives, axes, bedrolls, rope, and a few other essential items. The first day was an easy hike through the Eversong Woods. Nathanos picked some herbs as they hiked which made Sylvanas chuckle. Early in the afternoon the ground started sloping upwards, which slowed their pace. They pressed on until late afternoon when the sun began to go down behind the mountains.

“I’ll go find a suitable camp spot,” Nathanos offered.

“Don’t. I know a place not too far from here. Follow me.”

They went a little north and Sylvanas pointed to a crevice between two rocks. Had she not pointed it out, Nathanos would have completely missed it. It was half hidden between some bushes and didn’t stand out. When they entered the crevice, he saw that it opened out into a small cave. There was a stash of dry firewood and tinder, a couple of small, low, wooden cots, and a chest in the back that contained some dry food, blankets, and some bandages and medicines.

“Surprised? We have these hidden all over Quel’thalas. We use them for a variety of uses. If a patrol gets caught in a sudden storm, they can jump into one and dry off. If a Ranger is injured, there are first aid supplies here. This can be an overnight camp for Rangers journeying somewhere.”

“Will we need to resupply this in the morning?”

“No. There are patrols that check these and resupply them every week. We shouldn’t need to use many of the supplies that are here. There’s a creek just east of here. You should be able to hear it. The one supply this cave doesn’t have is fresh water.” She picked up a small keg and handed it to him. “Go get some water for us, would you? I’ll get the fire going.”

He scowled at her as he took the keg and headed out muttering to himself.

The cave warmed up quickly with a small fire burning. Dinner consisted of dried beef strips and root vegetables. It wasn’t much, but it did comfort them enough. They rolled out their bedding on the cots and laid down, relaxing after a long day of hiking.

“These hills remind me of home,” Nathanos said. “I spent my free time exploring those hills. Up, down, even in, I know those hills very well. They still hold secrets, though.”

“Do you get much chance to travel?” Sylvanas asked.

“No. Farming takes a lot of time and doesn’t pay a lot. My family’s farm is successful, but we still don’t have the time or money to travel. This is the farthest I’ve been. I managed to take my parents to Stratholme for Winter Veil last year thanks to the coin I made over the summer. That’s about all the travel I’ve done. I suppose you’ve traveled all over.”

Sylvanas smiled. “Not as much as you’d think. I’ve been all over Quel’thalas, naturally. I’ve been to Capitol City on official business a couple of times, and Stratholme. Oh, and I’ve been to Strahnbrad and South Shore. That’s about the extent of my travels. I find that I love Quel’thalas more than any other place. Your lands have some beautiful places, and I love feeling how each of the wild areas are. You can keep your human cities, though. Too much grey stone and blocky buildings. I need my tall, airy spires that are open to the world,” she chuckled.

“What about Dwarven cities?”

“Ugh! I wouldn’t want to live underground like that! I need trees and fresh air and blue skies above me.”

“Good thing you aren’t a dwarf.”

They both laughed at that.

The next morning, they made sure the cave was clean and things were put back the way they found them, and they headed out. The morning air was crisp and there was dew on the leaves of the bushes. They would have their backs to the sun for the first half of their journey. The ground became steeper the further west they went. At times they seemed to be crawling on all fours going up some of the steeper hills. The trees changed from oaks and maples to pines and cedar trees. Eventually they reached a cliff that had to be climbed. Nathanos went first so that Sylvanas could guide him.

“Remember to have three points of contact,” she called up to him. “That means two hands and one foot, or both feet and one hand in contact with the rock. You’ll be more stable that way.”

He grunted back to her, then focused on his climb. The first part of the climb hadn’t been too bad. There had been plenty of places to put hands and feet. Halfway up the cliff, that changed. Now he was busy searching for his next handhold. He saw a good one, but it was just out of reach. He saw another, but it didn’t look as good. He reached for it and tested it. It seemed good enough, so he shifted his weight to move his foot. Slowly he made his way up to the top as Sylvanas shouted encouragement to him. By the time he pulled himself over the edge at the top, his arms and legs were aching.

“Well done! I’m proud of you!” came a familiar elven voice from down below. “Now hurry up, anchor that rope, and throw it down to me so I can climb up.”

She laughed as she heard him mutter at her command.

They managed to avoid any more cliffs that had to be climbed, though there were some steep hills they had to go up. By late afternoon they were both breathing heavily.

“Find us a campsite. There should be a good spot nearby if memory serves me.”

Nathanos looked around for a few minutes, finally suggesting a flat spot near a small cliff. There was a slightly hollowed out area that looked large enough for them to fit into, and the cliff leaned outward slightly. Sylvanas approved of the site and offered to get some water from the creek just slightly downhill. He offered to get a fire lit and they split up to do their duties.

Nathanos gathered enough dry sticks, pine needles, and pine sap to build a decent fire, then set about making camp. There were a lot of flat stones on the ground, so he gathered them up and made a small wall to keep the wind from blowing on them. He managed to cut some branches and wedge them between the cliff face and the small wall, creating more of a windbreak. He built a space for the fire outside the shelter but with a section of wall behind it so the heat would reflect in. With everything set, he reached for the small pouch on his belt that held his flint and steel, only to find it missing. He checked his pockets and knapsack to no avail. Somehow, he had managed to lose it.

Thinking quickly, he made a bow drill set and managed to get a good ember after a couple of minutes. He was breathing hard and sweat was starting to drip down his face as he transferred the ember to the tinder bundle and blew the fire to life. He hid the bow drill in his knapsack and continued to feed the fire slowly until it was self-sustaining. He sat back, proud of himself.

“ _I got all of this done before Windrunner got back with the water.”_

Then it hit him. He built the camp and got the fire going, and she wasn’t back yet. The creek wasn’t that far away. She should be back by now. Alarmed, he jumped to his feet and started towards the sound of running water. He made it a couple of steps before he saw her with a pot of water in one hand and three cleaned fish in the other.

“Here you go. I cleaned them for you.”

“Why are you handing them to me?”

“So you can cook them, of course. I caught them and cleaned them. You get to cook them,” she laughed.

“There’s just one problem with that. I can’t cook. My mother does all the cooking, I never learned how. Figured my wife would take over when I married.”

She stared at him. “Seriously? I can’t cook either. I’ve always had servants and other Farstriders to cook for me.”

They looked at each other for a moment then burst out laughing.

“I suppose I can try to cook these,” he said. “I make no guarantee they will be edible.”

He ran some sticks through them, then placed them over the fire to cook. In the end, the fish were half burned and half undercooked, but somehow still edible.

“How did you catch these?” Nathanos asked after dinner.

“I caught them by hand.”

Nathanos gave her a dubious look. “By hand? Is that a special talent known only to Quel’dorei or even Hunters?”

Sylvanas chuckled. “No. Anyone can learn it. My family’s home is on the shore and I spent a lot of time in the water. I’m kind of surprised I didn’t grow gills and fins. I learned to carefully go up to fish and move my hands like fish underwater. The fish thought my hands were other fish and didn’t swim away. Back then I just pet the fish and they seemed to like it. When I got older and started learning to be a Ranger, I realized that I could catch fish that way.”

“That’s a clever way to catch fish, except you wind up soaking wet.”

“There is that drawback. Normally I bring spare clothes for just such an occurrence. This trip I’ll just have to suffer.”

They watched the fire for a while longer, and by the time Sylvanas’ clothes were dry they were ready for sleep.

Nathanos woke in the middle of the night. He spent a minute listening for any strange sounds, then he looked at the fire to make sure it was still good. When he was assured both situations were good, he relaxed again. Even though the shelter was reasonably warm, Sylvanas was snuggled against him with her head resting on his chest. He spent a few minutes staring at his mentor. She was beautiful even by elven standards; sleep enhanced that beauty. All her cares had left her face and the little crease between her eyebrows was gone. She felt good against him. He thought about the love of his life back at home and how he missed her. He drifted back to sleep thinking happy thoughts of his love.

The next morning, they heated some water and drank some tea to warm them up. The air was colder this morning than it had been the day before due to the higher elevation. Their plan was to head north, reaching Suncrown Village by evening, then canoeing south on Elrendar Lake back to Farstrider Enclave. They would have to push their pace, but they would be going downhill and that would help them. They still had to use caution because there were loose rocks and slippery spots that could send them crashing down.

They broke camp and headed north, following the stream as it wound its way downhill. The way was easy to hike; the underbrush was sparse and there were fewer cliffs that had to be navigated. Nathanos learned how to rappel down one cliff and he found it far easier than climbing up. By late morning, the trees were oaks and maples once again and the underbrush became thicker. By the afternoon the land was starting to flatten out.

“What’s that?” Nathanos asked, pointing to a stone archway set into the hillside decorated with crude carvings of trolls with feathered headdresses.

“Those are Amani catacombs. They were built and used by the trolls before we arrived in these lands. My ancestors went through them and cleaned them out years ago, and we don’t go inside unless we catch trolls in the area.”

“I see. You don’t even use them for emergency shelters?”

“No. They have a creepy feel to them that most like to avoid. The Village should be getting close now. Let’s pick up the pace, shall we? There’s a bathtub in the inn that is calling me.”

They started jogging toward the village, jumping over logs and underbrush, and dodging around trees. They startled a deer from its hiding spot and laughed as it ran from them. The sun was approaching the horizon when they finally reached Suncrown Village and the inn. There were some rooms that were reserved for Farstriders; Sylvanas and Nathanos took two of them.

As much as Sylvanas wanted to sink into the hot water of her bathtub, her stomach made it clear that she hadn’t had a lot to eat over the past three days. After putting their packs in their rooms, Sylvanas and Nathanos sat down to eat. They were served fresh bread with butter and two pitchers of fresh water. Nathanos had some roast beef, potatoes, vegetables and beer while Sylvanas had roast chicken, fresh vegetables and a delicate white wine. It was wonderful to sit and enjoy a meal that neither of them had to cook. They sat for a while after dinner enjoying the feeling of a full stomach and the warmth of being inside.

“You did very well climbing up and down those hills,” she praised her student. “Those were easy ones, though. There are some that I won’t even consider, although there are Farstriders who go up those with ease.”

“Thank you. I’m still a bit sore from that one climb.”

“Get used to it. There will be harder ones in the future. Oh, and I’m going to mark a map with our emergency shelter locations. I want you to learn where each one is. Eventually you’ll be able to go around to each one to see what they look like.”

He nodded and yawned. Sylvanas knew exactly how he felt. Even though she kept herself in great shape, this trek had been strenuous. A nice hot bath to get the dirt of the past three days off, a little soak to relax her muscles, then a good sleep in a warm bed is just what she needed.

“Oh, there is a place for your dirty clothes right next to your door. Place them there and they will be cleaned and dried for you while you sleep.”

“That’s a nice service.”

“Yes, it is. We use this inn quite a lot, and they decided it would be best to clean our clothes while we slept rather than have us come down in well-seasoned clothes.”

He nodded and just stared ahead. It was obvious he needed to get to his room soon. There was just one more thing…

“Before we head to our rooms, I found this and thought it might be yours.”

She placed a small well-worn brown pouch on the table.

“Where did you find this? I thought it was lost for good!” He opened the pouch and pulled out his flint, steel and a tin with charcloth in it.

Sylvanas smiled. “It was at the top of the cliff you climbed. The strings must have broken as you pulled yourself over the edge.”

“Why didn’t you give it back when you found it?”

“I wanted to see what you would do. Sometimes things that we need get lost through no fault of our own. We need to be able to work around that loss. You did very well putting that bow drill together and getting a fire going. In the future, I would keep fire making tools either in a pocket, or around my neck and under my shirt. That way they will be safer.”

“Good advice. I will take it to heart. For now, I need some sleep and I know you do too. I can see the weariness on your face.”

“Of course. I’ll see you in the morning.”

Both Nathanos and Sylvanas looked much fresher in the morning. They ate a quick breakfast, then headed to the lake. A canoe had been readied for them and they climbed in and pushed off quickly. The lake was calm, and they were able to watch the birds and fish as they progressed down the lake.

“Did you get to canoe a lot when you were younger?” Nathanos probed.

“No. The sea is not a good place to canoe. We do have a bigger boat docked in Windrunner Village, though. I spent many hours on that.”

“I’ve never seen the sea. My family’s farm is close to the Thondroril River, though and I’ve been there many times.”

“Each body of water has different qualities. This lake is usually calm. Streams are small but can flood without warning. The sea can be calm one day and wild the next. You have to learn how each one acts.”

“Yeah. What is that tower over there?”

“Ah, that’s Dawnstar Spire. That’s the home to Dar’Khan Drathir, one of our magisters. He uses his magics to help build Silvermoon and keep Quel’thalas the way we like it. Seeing it means we're almost to the Enclave.”

They arrived at the Enclave shortly after that. Sylvanas gave Nathanos the rest of the day off, then headed to her rooms. She was disappointed to find them empty; she longed to feel Lor’themar’s arms around her. He was busy filling in for her, she knew. She looked longingly at her bed and considered taking a nap, but duty called. She needed to be updated on the humans and hundreds of other details that she dealt with daily.

“ _No rest for me. I need to know what’s happening before I can relax.”_

She headed to the canteen to grab a light lunch, then took it to her office. As expected, Lor’themar was there, along with most of the leaders of the Farstriders. They were gathered around the map table and from the position of the markers, she could see why.

The trolls were massed and on the move.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A new chapter! Yay!
> 
> I had this chapter most of the way done when Word decided to screw me over. An entire week's work vanished, and the only saved version was several days old and only 1/4 of the way into the chapter. Yes, I use autosave, and I save before shutting it down. This was a weird glitch. I re-wrote this and it came out better, I think.


	17. North to the Retreat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nathanos leads the humans north to Farstrider Retreat.

Nathanos eyed the assembly calmly. Word had spread about the troll invasion, and the young humans were afraid. He hoped that his outward calm would spread through his fellow humans. He also hoped they wouldn’t see that he was faking being calm. He saw the maps in Sylvanas’ office and the markers denoting the trolls’ forces. The situation was not good.

“The trolls are heading for Thas’alah, our mother tree. That puts them between us and Lordaeron. Our scouts seem to think there are a couple of tribes that have banded together,” Sylvanas had informed him solemnly the night before. “We can’t get the humans out of Quel’thalas.”

“We’ll fight with you against the trolls. That’s what all this training is for.”

Sylvanas smiled sadly and shook her head. “None of you are ready for this. Not even you.”

Nathanos knew she was right, but his heart wanted to fight. The look in her eyes told him she wasn’t going to give in on this.

“What is going to happen to us? Those trolls could be using a diversion to get your forces headed one way, then send another force here leaving us unprotected.”

“You are going to take them north, to Farstrider Retreat. Report to Lieutenant Dawnrunner when you get there. It’s normally a hike of 3-4 days. With a large group it will take longer.”

“What do we do when we get there?”

“You will continue their training as best you can. The few Farstriders there will help you. I’m going to officially make you the leader of the humans. You can appoint your seconds as you see fit.”

The whole situation hit him hard and fast. He’d had one night to prepare himself for this. He hated dealing with groups of people so of course Sylvanas put him in charge of all the humans. The first thing he had done that morning was to gather his lieutenants and sergeants to inform them of their promotions. Preston was appointed first lieutenant and his second in command. Therese was appointed lieutenant as well. Norwin and Anselme were made sergeants. The other six second year students were also appointed lieutenants and sergeants. Somehow the eleven of them had to control and train the 50 first year students.

“I know you’ve heard what’s going on. The trolls have come out of hiding and are fighting fiercely. They’re south of here, at least two day’s march away. The Farstriders are running to catch them and shove them back into the hole they came from. They can’t continue our training while they’re doing that.” He paused and took a drink from his water bag to steady himself. “We can’t get back to Lordaeron.”

The crowd started muttering among themselves. They were scared and most were starting to rethink coming here. Nathanos extended his hands in a calming gesture and the crowd quieted down.

“The Ranger-General made arrangements for us to move north, away from the trolls. We’ll need to move quickly. I have an idea for moving our tents, so we’re not burdened by them, but we’ll still need to carry most of our gear. Once we’re there, we’ll continue our training as much as we can. We’ll also act as backup defense, mostly hunting down troll scouts. Now, let’s get moving and tear this camp down. Leave the tents and cots; you’ll need them tonight. We’ll tear them down in the morning right before we leave. Norwin, I need to talk to you.”

People started running left and right to get the camp packed for travel. Norwin came as called to hear what Nathanos had to say.

“We need to be able to cook for this whole company. I know you can’t do it yourself, but I want you to find out who can cook and recruit them into kitchen duty. When we set up camp in the evening, your group will be responsible for making dinner for all of us. The Ranger-General said she would make sure we got food and cooking gear for the trip. We’re going to have some hawkstriders to haul our gear, so we don’t have to worry about that.”

Norwin nodded. “I think I know a few decent cooks. I’ll go hunt them down and let them know.”

Nathanos talked with each of his officers, giving orders and getting suggestions from them, then went to report to Sylvanas. Her office was crowded with her own Farstriders as she gave them orders and discussed tactics. Alleria looked up as Nathanos stood in the doorway. He knocked and waited for permission to enter. Sylvanas didn’t even look up from her maps as she ordered him to enter. He briefed her on what was happening with the students, then asked for two boats to sail the tents to the north end of the lake. Sylvanas agreed with the idea and sent him to the docks to make arrangements.

“ _It’s too bad they don’t have enough boats to take us all north,”_ he thought. “ _They don’t even have enough boats to bring all the Farstriders south.”_

He watched the camp get taken down and packed up. Norwin reported that he had his kitchen crew picked out and they were packing the kitchen gear and food with the help of the elves. His lieutenants reported that the five squads had their gear packed and ready to go. The Farstriders provided dinner for them, and Nathanos ate with them to get to know them better. When dinner was over, he returned to his room to pack his own gear. He didn’t mind packing; this was just a temporary living space for him. What bothered him was the thought he might never see home again.

“ _Will Mother and Father ever find out what happened to me? Who will take over the farm? Uncle Gwilym has his own farm. I never thought my farewells would be for eternity.”_

His hands shook as the possibilities came crashing down on him.

“ _I came to learn how to fight and defend myself and home. This was supposed to be a safe place to do so. Now it looks like we’re in a war zone. I don’t know that the trip to Farstrider Retreat is safe, and I’ll have sixty others with me. I wish I were home right now.”_

He woke up to a knocking on his door. He wrapped a towel around his waist and answered the door. Sylvanas was there with several objects in her hands.

“Did I wake you?” she asked as she walked in.

“You know damn well you did. Give me one moment,” he growled as he grabbed his pants and went to the bathroom. He emerged shortly after and donned a shirt. “This seems earlier than normal. What’s up?”

“I wanted to talk to you before you leave. I know this is throwing everything upside down. I want you to take care of the students. They’re scared, they don’t think they’ll get home again. That’s something that we’re all feeling. Death comes for us all eventually, but we do all we can to delay that. Sending you north is one of them. If the trolls do manage to turn northward, we’ll send you to Sunsail Anchorage and send you home by ship. I don’t see that happening. The Amani have attacked us before, and each time we’ve sent them back to their holes.”

“So, there is a way back home for us.”

“Of course. As long as we live, there is hope.”

“Do you fear you’ll never see your family again?”

“Every time I face an enemy. I must do my part to make sure that death comes for my enemies, not me. That fear will only get in my way, so I use hope to fight it. That hope is backed by the skills I have honed; hope alone won’t defeat anything. There will come a time when I will face an enemy stronger than me, and when that happens death will come for me and I will go to the Shadowlands. Until then, I let hope inspire me to do my best.”

There was silence as Nathanos thought about what she said.

“ _She always looks so confident. Even now. I never would have thought she feared anything.”_

As if reading his mind, she added “Everyone fears something. Some fear spiders, some heights. Some fear failure or being humiliated. Most everyone fears death. What matters is how each person handles that fear. Some people go crazy, and some run away. Those people are dangerous, and they will need to be taken care of, but the most dangerous ones are the ones who freeze. They block movement forward and backward. You can’t leave them to be slaughtered. You must get them through their fear and either out of there or back into action. As their Captain, you are responsible for them; you must get them moving again.” She paused, then grinned. “Knowing you, you’ll insult them then get into a fist fight with them.”

He barked out a short laugh, then realized she was getting him through his fears in her own way.

“The sun is about to rise. Was there a reason you came here, or did you just want to talk?”

“Ah, yes. I have a missive for you to give Lieutenant Dawnrunner,” she handed him a folded letter sealed with the blue seal of the Ranger-General. “I also have a map marked with the locations of the safe shelters in Quel’thalas. I want you to memorize those locations. I also want you to take advantage of the libraries there to continue your analysis of past campaigns. There are several good books on troll wars; focus on those.”

Nathanos nodded his head and grunted. He looked around, feeling better. He was going to miss this. But he had another duty to perform right now. He gathered his gear and adjusted it, so it was evenly distributed, opened the door, let Sylvanas out, and followed her to the campsite. His men were just waking and starting to dismantle their tents. He saw Norwin and his cooks making breakfast, and his stomach rumbled at the smell.

“Set your pack down and have some food before the hike,” Norwin called.

Smiling, Nathanos set his pack down and grabbed a plate of food.

“How long is this going to set our departure back?” he asked.

“It won’t. They’re coming over by squads. As soon as the last squad is served, we’re cleaning up. This stuff is staying here, so we don’t need to pack it. We should be done and ready to go by the time they finish eating.”

Nathanos nodded, took his food and moved aside so a squad could get their food. Things were going smoothly, all things considered. About an hour after sunrise the company was ready to move out. The tents had been packed onto two boats to be shipped ahead. The hawkstriders had been packed up and a couple of people assigned to take care of the large birds. Each squad had their leaders with them, and Nathanos was in the lead. Sylvanas stood in one of the spires, looking down on them.

“ _They’re so young. I wish I could send some Rangers with them, but I need everyone against the trolls. Marris will do well getting them to the Retreat, though.”_

Nathanos turned and saw Sylvanas watching. He saluted her, then turned and led them north, to safety.

They marched as far north as they could, stopping briefly to eat a quick lunch. Late afternoon they stopped for the night. The squad leaders covered shelter construction with their squads, and they set about making camp for the night. One squad member was responsible for lighting a fire, the rest gathered materials for shelters, and water from the lake. Norwin and his crew unloaded the birds and started fixing dinner while those taking care of the hawkstriders led them away and fed them. It was a complicated dance, and there were a few missteps the first couple of nights.

Nathanos set the watches for the night; one member of each squad plus one of his officers on two-hour shifts. He did not excuse himself, assigning himself to one shift each night. Something was bothering him, but he couldn’t put his finger on it. It felt as if the land around them was uneasy.

The next couple of days proceeded quietly. Some of the company were complaining of sore feet or muscle cramps. They were tended to and quickly returned to the march. By the third day everyone knew what to do when the march was halted for the day. Nathanos was proud of his crew. He decided to give them a day of rest so they would be fresh when they arrived at Farstrider Retreat. They had mostly stayed near the lake so they would have fresh water, and they could see the north shore of the lake. To the east the land rose into hills, and Nathanos thought he could see some ruins in the distance. He planned on taking several of his officers and scouting the area on the next day.

“ _If those are troll ruins, they could be trouble. I wouldn’t be surprised to see the trolls send small groups up to fortify here and strike north and south from here.”_

The next morning Nathanos took most of his officers and headed east, moving quietly through the woods. He could feel the hairs on the back of his neck standing on edge. It seemed like the trek to the ruins was taking forever. They slowly crested a hill, crouched down, and gazed down on the ruins.

These ruins had been made by trolls. The large stones had the tell-tale troll carvings of primitive animals. The ruins looked empty, but there was something still not right about them. There were no standing buildings, but there were plenty of wall sections that trolls could hide behind. Nathanos signaled the group forward.

They seemingly held their collective breath as they descended into the ruins, weapons at the ready. Everyone was trying to look everywhere as they made their way through the ruins. Nathanos halted them several times to examine the ground closely, looking for tracks and other signs that someone had been there recently. The area was too quiet; there weren’t any birds singing, even in the distance.

“Stay low,” Nathanos whispered. “Stay close to cover. This feels too much like an ambush.”

They turned a corner around a wall fragment and stopped in their tracks. A fire had burned there recently. There was charred wood there and no fluffy ash, which indicated the fire had burned recently. It was cool to the touch, though some spots retained the last remnants of heat. There were tracks in the area and signs that someone had been there recently. The group crouched lower and scanned the area feeling the trolls staring at them and lining up their shots. There were plenty of pines for someone to hide behind as well as large stone blocks and wall segments.

“Let’s get out of here. Now,” Nathanos whispered curtly.

They started to back out quickly. Nathanos stayed in the back erasing their tracks as best he could. He looked up and saw the long pink mohawk and white tusks of a troll seconds before a spear flashed toward him.

“Trolls!” he yelled as he knocked the spear aside and dove behind a stone block.

The squad reacted immediately, diving for what cover was available. Spears clattered against stone, missing their marks, then the trolls burst from the trees charging toward them. Arrows were nocked and loosed at the trolls. Most of the shots went wide, though a few did hit.

“Don’t rush! Make your shots count!”

The next volley was much better, downing two trolls, but now the trolls were upon them. They switched weapons quickly, dropping bows and drawing swords. Nathanos sprung up from his position behind the block and hit the lead troll directly in the chest with both axes, watching the next troll. He pulled his axes free and blocked the second troll’s attack with one axe while sinking his other axe deep into the shoulder of the first. The weight of the troll sinking to the ground helped him free his axe as he dodged another attack. A third troll started to attack him but was dropped by a sword thrust from Preston over his head.

A thrown axe grazed Nathanos’ shoulder and he grunted in pain as he planted an axe in the face of the second troll. He turned to see where the axe came from and spotted a few trolls armed with several throwing axes.

“Therese! Kerwin! Shoot them down!”

The two grabbed their bows, crouched down behind some blocks and fired at the axe throwers. Both trolls went down with arrows protruding from their chests. The archers turned their aim to the remaining trolls, aiming carefully to avoid hitting their fellow humans. The rest of the trolls went down quickly after that. The humans stood panting heavily for a few moments, then went and looted the corpses, looking for any orders the trolls might have had on them.

They were surprised to find out there were fewer trolls than they thought: there were less than ten trolls. It had felt as if they were fighting at least twenty.

“Let’s get out of here. I’ll cover our tracks. Move!”

The squad didn’t need any more convincing; they started off at a careful trot back toward the camp. Nathanos grabbed a branch and brushed away the tracks but could do nothing for broken branches and moss knocked off logs. He knew what they would be working on when they got to safety. Once they got back to camp, he ordered watches set and set perimeter alarm traps. Nobody got much sleep that night, and they broke camp early. The company set a fast pace helped by the downhill slope of the ground toward the Retreat.

They arrived and saw their tents and cots set neatly near the grounds where they would be set up. Lieutenant Dawnrunner came out to greet them. Nathanos saluted the Lieutenant and handed her the missive from Sylvanas. Dawnrunner broke the seal and read her orders, then took a closer look at Nathanos, frowning at the injuries on him and several of his men.

“What happened?” she asked.

“We ran into some trolls in the ruins by the north end of the lake,” Nathanos replied.

“What were you doing there?”

“Scouting it out. Seeing if there were trolls there.” Nathanos explained his theory about trolls using those ruins as a base to attack from. “The intent was to just scout the area and report our findings to you.”

“You shouldn’t have gone there. You should have come straight here and let us deal with it.”

“I did what I thought was best under the circumstances. What if those trolls attacked us at night? We would have had worse casualties than we currently have.”

“I’ll remind you that, while you were made a Captain, you are still under the Farstriders in rank. You don’t have the experience to be making such decisions yet, no matter who is training you. What’s done is done. In the future you’ll come to me before randomly going out and scouting unfamiliar territory when there might be enemies around. Understood?”

“Yes, _Ma’am.”_

“Good. We have extra rooms in the Retreat for you and your officers. We can’t fit everyone inside, but we can at least provide rooms for them. Zalene Firstlight will oversee feeding your crew, and I’m sure she’ll keep you busy hunting to keep the larders full. If you can spare some of your troops to help her, I’m sure she’ll be grateful. Tell your company to set up to the north of the Retreat. There’s more room there for their tents and campfires. Welcome to Farstrider Retreat.”

Nathanos stood and stared at her as she walked inside the building.

“Don’t mind her. She gets a bit cranky when things get out of hand unexpectedly, like they are now.”

He turned and saw a woman with short pale hair.

“Arathel Sunforge, at your service. I’m normally the Retreat’s blacksmith, but now I get to be tour guide.”

“Tour…?”

“I get to show you where you’ll be staying and key places here at the Retreat. Let’s get your men set up, shall we?”

She started off towards the pile of tents and Nathanos hurried to catch up with her. Once there, she yelled for silence, then explained how she expected the troops to set up their camp. They looked to Nathanos for guidance, not knowing what to make of this elf. He just told them to follow orders. Once the company was started setting up their tents, he grabbed the officers and they went inside.

“Now the Retreat is normally just that. A Retreat where Farstriders can relax and recuperate. We’re not really set up for military housing. We would appreciate it if you would keep your voices down, not get too rowdy when you get drunk, and don’t destroy your rooms. Magister Duskwither and his apprentice Loralthalis are staying here at present, and he’s rather prickly.”

“I assure you we’ll behave. Won’t we?” He looked at his officers with a stern look and they all replied with nodding heads and assurances that the elves won’t even know they’re here.

“Good. I would also suggest regular bathing. The Lieutenant doesn’t like unpleasant smells in the hallway.”

Nathanos smiled. “I don’t think that will be a problem after today.”

“Alright, then. Let’s get you into your rooms.”

“ _I like this one. She’s got a good head on her, and the rest isn’t so bad, either.”_ Nathanos thought as she led them through the hallway, assigning each officer to a room until she reached Nathanos’ room.

“Here you go. If you need anything, ask.”

“Where is the library?”

“The library? I wouldn’t have taken you for a bookworm. You look more like the type to take action.”

“Ranger-General’s orders. I have to read a couple of books while I’m here.”

“I hope you can read Thalassian then. We don’t have a lot of books in other languages.”

Nathanos smiled. “That won’t be a problem.”

She arched an eyebrow at him, gave him directions to the library, and then took her leave. He entered his room and realized it was larger and more luxurious than his room at the Enclave.

Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm trying to post one chapter a week. That seems like a workable pace. Of course, if Word eats my chapters again, it might be longer. Look for updates on the weekends.
> 
> This one is a little longer. I wanted to get the entire trip north in one chapter. Do generally prefer longer chapters or have the chapter lengths been good?


	18. Attack!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things are going great...until they aren't.

“… _The trolls have intellect, but they are conflicted. If they ever find a leader to bring them all together, they will be a real danger to Quel’thalas.”_

Sylvanas sighed. Marris was blunt, but he was right. She wanted to wipe the trolls out of Quel’thalas so her people could live in peace but attacking them would unite them and that would spell disaster.

“ _Someone like Rastakhan could unite them. Fortunately for us he’s in Zandalar ruling over his tribe.”_

She set Nathanos’ essay aside. His Thalassian was improving; she wondered who was teaching him. “ _Probably Arathel,”_ she guessed as she picked up the next report. The trolls were putting up a fight along the road to Lordaeron. They hadn’t reached Thas’alah yet, but they were pushing hard. They had split from one massive army into several smaller groups, using guerilla tactics to hit targets, then disappear into the forest. This was a new tactic for them, and she hadn’t figured out quite how to combat it. She had lost several excellent Rangers going after them, and that infuriated her.

She had left the Enclave to be closer to the action; she needed to see what was going on firsthand. She also felt the need to personally make the trolls pay for their attacks. The camp was well defended and somewhat hidden in the forest. Patrols went out and returned at all hours of the day; their goal was to find the main troll camp. So far, they hadn’t succeeded although they had managed to destroy several squads.

Sylvanas brought her thoughts back to the report in hand. Another attack on a small village. She marked the attack on her map, trying to find a pattern in the attacks. It was clear there were several bands of trolls attacking targets randomly. The targets were too far apart for the attacks to be done by one or even two groups.

“ _I’d love to hear Marris’ analysis of this. Too bad he’s at the Retreat.”_

She grabbed another report. Another attack. She read further and her heart sank. Suncrown Village! How did they get there? There were no reports of troll activity in that area. They could have sent a squad north past Tranquillien, but there were active patrols throughout that area to make sure they didn’t move north. The other path was to go north from Zul’Aman but that went past the Farstrider Enclave, which was still well manned and the area well patrolled. A third possibility entered her mind as she studied the maps.

“ _What if they sailed to the ruins at Tor’Watha? They’d have to go over the mountains, but it_ is _a possibility, and we haven’t been patrolling the Forbidding Seas. That’s going to change now.”_

She wrote orders to have dragonhawk riders ride over the area, looking for signs of trolls moving into the area, then found a courier to take the message to the Enclave. She hoped this action would stem the problem before it got out of control. Next report.

The report was from Nathanos about the progress of his company. They have been progressing quickly. A handful of his troops were pulled aside by Magister Duskwither and were learning magic, while a couple of others were learning priestly magic. The company was putting in a lot of extra time drilling and practicing their fighting skills; the knowledge that they might have to fight for their lives was a strong motivator. Lieutenant Dawnrunner was working on his leadership skills, giving him tips and pointers. Preston was developing into a leader himself, as was Anselme and Kerwin. A few of the first years were learning the art of leatherworking and making armor for the company. Therese was becoming a blacksmith under the tutelage of Arathel.

“ _They’ve transformed themselves from a bunch of kids wanting to learn how to fight into a military unit. Each person is finding themselves while working together as a whole. It will be interesting to see what happens with them.”_

She sat back and relaxed for a moment. It was good to hear some good news for a change. Whatever happened with these humans, their lives had changed. Her ears caught the sound of a courier running into camp calling for her. She quickly rose and went to meet him. He gave her a quick salute and handed her a rolled piece of paper sealed with the red signet of Lieutenant Dawnrunner. A feeling of dread filled her as she broke the seal.

Farstrider Retreat had been attacked.

Nathanos was overseeing the various forms of training that were going on. The company had progressed well though they could be doing better. The new armor they were wearing slowed them down a little, but that would change once they got used to it. His officers were also progressing in their roles, making his job easier. He was impressed to see a few of his troops studying magic as well. They seemed to be happier learning magic than weapons, so he let them focus on that.

After his first encounter with Dawnrunner, she had warmed to their presence and was helping Nathanos manage the company. She was still temperamental, and he had to watch her moods closely. It seemed that any time he had to himself was spent writing reports to Sylvanas and reading about trolls. He was kept busy from the time he woke to the time he went to sleep.

He was pulled out of his musings by a movement in the woods. It was just there for a moment, but it didn’t seem right. He scanned the woods for a few moments but didn’t see anything. He was uneasy, though.

“That’s enough for today. Back to camp.”

The squad looked confused; they had just started practicing sword work. They lowered their weapons and paused. A few turned toward the camp, but hesitated.

There! Nathanos caught the brightly colored hair and blue skin of a troll moving closer to them in the woods. He had to get the entire company back to the Retreat and fast.

“Back to the Retreat! Now! TROLLS!”

That last word dispelled any confusion the squad had. They turned and ran for the Retreat building. This spurred the trolls to run faster to catch what they suspected was easy prey. As they emerged from the woods Nathanos knew his squad was in trouble; there were easily twenty to thirty trolls against his thirteen.

“Anselme, blow that horn of yours for all you’re worth. We need help here if we’re going to get back to the Retreat.”

Anselme raised his horn to his lips and blew three notes, paused, then blew three more. Nathanos nocked an arrow, drew, aimed, and then loosed it at a troll. The troll knocked it aside with its spear, let out a roar, and kept running. Nathanos kept firing at the trolls as he ran as did Kerwin. The trolls kept running toward them with their loping gait and they were closing ground.

As he turned to fire another arrow at the trolls, he saw an axe coming for him, thrown by one of the trolls. He managed to dodge it but stumbled and his arrow flew harmlessly. He heard a cry to his left and turned to see one of the students go down with an axe in his back. Two of his fellows grabbed him and carried him on. More of the squad were getting hit by thrown axes and spears, though their armor kept them from being killed. Nathanos put his bow away and pulled his axes out. He didn’t want to die, but he had to buy the squad some time.

He turned to face the trolls and his heart sank; he wasn’t going to be able to delay that mass of trolls at all. One troll smiled wickedly around his long tusks and headed for Nathanos, spear at the ready. For a brief moment, Nathanos froze. Then he remembered Sylvanas’ words to him and forced himself to trust his skills.

“ _This is stupid,”_ he thought. “ _I can’t stop them by myself and they aren’t going to let me fight them one on one.”_

He turned to run and noticed the confusion at the front. The other squads heard the horn and had come running. This made the numbers more even, but the odds were still in the trolls’ favor. He scanned the troops quickly. How could he slow the trolls down to get the company to safety?

“Archers! Fire at will! Make your shots count! Shields in front! Protect the archers!”

He watched as the confusion continued. They couldn’t hear him, and the damn troll axe throwers were hitting so many of them. He saw Preston and yelled at him to get his attention. Preston turned, a look of shock on his face.

“Preston, get the archers firing. Shields to the front to block these axes and spears.”

Preston nodded, then turned to shout orders at the archers. At first, nothing happened, then people started hearing and understanding and then repeating the orders so all could hear. The archers started firing upon the trolls and a shield wall formed in front of them to protect them. Nathanos turned to see how the trolls reacted and was thrilled to see them slow down as they dodged the arrows.

“ _We might just get out of this if the elves ever show up.”_ He looked up at his troops and grinned. He could see the terror on their faces, but they were doing well in spite of that terror. The wounded were getting to the back with the help of those who weren’t shooting a bow or holding a shield. He started running toward the group, pulling his bow out to join the archers when he got there. He took two steps before feeling a searing pain in his right leg that made his leg buckle. Looking down he saw the tip of a spear sticking out from his leg.

Panting he reached down with a trembling hand, grabbed the shaft of the spear and pulled letting out a cry of pain. For a long, agonizing moment all he could do was stand there shaking from the pain. A voice in his head told him to move and get to safety. He heard the roar of the trolls getting closer and staying put any longer was a death sentence. He leaned on the spear and took a step forward, his leg nearly buckling from the pain of the wound. He half hopped and half ran to the safety of his men, then turned and hurled the spear back at the trolls.

He took a moment to assess the situation. Many trolls had fallen but a lot more were still charging toward them. The injured were getting to the Retreat but wouldn’t last long if the trolls got to them first. Drawing his black bow, he took aim at the troll closest to him and fired. The arrow struck true and dropped the troll but Nathanos had already moved to his next target.

“Preston, move the men on the far half back 10 paces then reset and fire again.”

Preston nodded and moved his men back. Those who stayed covered for the others. Once they were in place, Nathanos moved his troops back. He fired arrow after arrow at the trolls, felling many. The numbers looked to be in the humans’ favor for a change.

“ _That still won’t help us. They have experience that we don’t, and they know it. Where are those damned elves?”_

He reached for another arrow and found nothing. He was out of arrows. Glancing at the others, he saw many of them were either out or close to it. Grimacing, he pulled out his axes. A troll rushed up to him with axes in either hand and Nathanos ducked a slash while striking the troll’s knee. He felt a satisfying crunch as his axe hit the unarmored limb. The troll let out a cry of pain and a sword slid between two ribs as one of the students struck. The troll dropped and Nathanos gave the soldier a nod of approval.

Another troll armed with a spear took the first troll’s place. Nathanos tried to dodge and dance away from the razor-sharp spear tip, but his injured leg hampered him. He managed to block several thrusts but missed a swing with the butt of the spear that cracked him across the back of his hand causing him to drop his axe. He reached for his dagger and found he couldn’t tighten his grip. He opened and closed his hand and felt something clicking in his hand. He raised his axe and attacked with all the fury he could muster but the troll blocked his axe, smiled, and smashed him in the head with its thick skull. Nathanos blinked twice as the world swam and blurred, and he lost his balance and fell to a sitting position. His mind was screaming to his remaining good hand to swing at the troll, but his arm refused to obey. He felt the troll place its bare foot on his chest, knock him onto his back, and hold him down. Looking up he saw the troll raise its spear high in both hands preparing to impale him.

“ _And now death comes for me…”_

As he watched, preparing to feel the spear impale him, he saw a frozen ball of ice, a fireball, and several purple balls of energy strike the troll, knocking him back.

“ _That’s odd. It’s too warm for snowballs…”_ he thought before darkness overtook him.

He woke with a terrible headache and pain in both his left hand and right leg. He started to rise but had to stop due to dizziness.

“Lie back down. That’s an order.”

The voice was familiar, but it belonged to someone far to the south. He looked around and saw that he was in his bed in his room at Farstrider Retreat. Off to the side was Sylvanas; a very blurry Sylvanas, but Sylvanas none the less. He tried to rise again only to feel her easily push him back down.

“Don’t make me sit on you to keep you down. The healers spent enough energy just keeping you alive. You still have some bad wounds that need healing.”

“I thought you were south, fighting the trolls there.”

“I was. When I heard about this attack, I had a mage teleport me here.”

Nathanos looked dejected. “I failed.”

“Failed at what?”

“Keeping the company safe. How many died?”

“Nobody died, although it was close in a lot of cases including you. There are a few who probably won’t walk again and a few lost arms. Had you not given the order to retreat when you did, we would have lost one whole squad, you included.”

“You ordered me to keep them safe. This shouldn’t have happened.”

“Damn your stubbornness. You were not at fault. If anything, _I’m_ to blame for this. We didn’t watch the east well enough and they set up a camp in some ancient troll ruins about a day south of here. They’ve hit several targets from there. We’re organizing an attack to wipe them out. I should have thought to have patrols there.”

“You mean the ruins where we found trolls on the way up here?”

“What?” Sylvanas was surprised.

“On the way up here, we stopped for a day so I could check the ruins out. I took most of the officers there, and we found eight trolls. I told the Lieutenant when we arrived and assumed she would have sent you a report on it. She scolded me for investigating the ruins.”

Sylvanas was silent for a while. Nathanos thought she looked angry through the blurry vision he had. It was an unsettling sight. Then she sighed and changed the subject.

“It’s clear you aren’t safe here. We’re going to arrange for you to go to Sunsail Anchorage and get you home. Or at least as far as Stratholme.”

“What if I don’t want to go home?”

“I’m not just talking about you.”

“What if they don’t want to go? There are some here learning magic. They would be crushed if they had to give that up. We are practicing hard and learning as fast as we can. They are miles ahead of the students from last year. You should have seen them against the trolls. They didn’t freeze. Once we figured out how to get orders heard over the noise, they did what they had to do…”

“Nathanos, they’re not ready,” Sylvanas said slowly. She held up a hand to cut off his rebuttal. “Yes, they’re better than the class last year. They still aren’t ready to be thrown into _our_ war. This isn’t your war. The Quel’dorei and the trolls have been at war for centuries. You just got caught at the wrong time.”

“At least let them decide.”

“They’re scared. They almost died and they know it. They don’t want to be here now that they know it’s not safe.”

“If Lordaeron went to war they’d be conscripted and forced to fight without any training and without any choice in the matter,” he countered. “They’d be given crude weapons and thrown at the enemy. You’re giving them the training that our own king won’t even give them, and they appreciate that.”

“Their parents won’t appreciate it when a troll kills them when they’re only half trained,” she snapped.

Nathanos recoiled as if he had been slapped.

Sylvanas sighed. “I know you want to stay. I’m sure there are others, especially those who were here last year. The fact is, it’s not safe. I’ll contact Prince Kael’thas and see if the humans learning magic here can study in Dalaran. That’s a better place for them anyway. I’ll also see if I can arrange for the rest to study arms with some of Terenas’ guard. If this war is finished by next year, we’ll bring them back.”

“ _She’s right. We need to go back to Lordaeron while this is going on. Why am I fighting so hard against her?”_

“I can’t return next summer. I’m needed back on the farm. I was going to talk to you about that. Maybe coming back in the winter, after the harvest and returning just before the spring planting…”

“We’ll talk about that later. For now, you need rest.”

“Can you have someone give me something for my head? It feels like the trolls are using it for a drum.”

Sylvanas smiled. “I’ll send someone in with some pain relief. You rest. That’s an order.”

“Thank you and thank you for coming up here.”

“You’re welcome. We’ll talk later.”

He relaxed back into his bed and watched her leave, then closed his eyes. He wasn’t sure how long he slept, but when he woke a priest was there with some willow bark tea. She was checking his wounds, using some magic to help heal them. He took the tea and drank it down, then closed his eyes again to let the tea do its work.

When he woke again his head felt much better and his other wounds were mostly healed. He managed to get out of bed and walked to his door, but he felt exhausted just doing that. He opened his door and saw a Ranger standing outside.

“I need something to eat and drink. Could you get me something? Thanks.”

He made his way back to his bed, climbed in, and waited. After a few minutes there was a knock at his door and Norwin entered carrying a tray of food.

“It’s about time you woke up. You’ve been out for three days.”

“That long? No wonder I’m so hungry and weak.”

“Yeah. I’m only allowed to give you broth and bread right now. Sorry. When you’re feeling better, I’ll make a real meal for you.”

Nathanos laughed. “Right now, broth and bread will do. How are you doing? Did you get injured?”

“I’m good. Got a couple of bruises but I got a couple of kills, too. When you went down, I thought we were done for. Then the mages showed up and lit those trolls on fire…or whatever that purple stuff is. We got some healers working on the injured so they could get back to the Retreat, and then the elves tore into what was left. Therese pounded on those trolls pretty bad; they started staying away from her. Preston kept us together when you went down. We were scared, but you looked so calm. We figured if you could do it, so could we.”

“Why do you think I keep telling you to practice? I was just as scared as you were…maybe even more so because I had to worry about all of you, not just me. I knew that I didn’t have to think about how to attack because my muscles knew what to do. I knew my skills were good and they would get me out of trouble.”

Norwin thought about that for a few minutes while Nathanos ate his soup.

“I suppose you have a point, but you still went down and were almost killed.”

“Yeah. There’s always someone better than you out there. Your best bet is to make sure they work hard for that kill. Maybe they’ll make a mistake that you can use to your advantage.”

Norwin nodded. He looked apprehensive. “Remember last year when you yelled at Anselme? About how he wanted to be a hero? I think a lot of the company had to face that reality. They realized that just holding a sword or bow didn’t make them a hero, and I think they’re re-thinking why they came here. We faced that last year with the gnolls, but we had the chance to work together before that. These trolls were tougher, and they were the first thing a lot of them fought.”

“What are you getting at?”

“Nathanos, word is they’re going to send us back to Lordaeron. “

“Yes. I discussed it with Sylvanas a little.”

“Some of them want to go back, but I don’t want to go. There’s nothing for me in Lordaeron.”

“Neither do I, though I do have family to return to. The thing is none of us are ready to be in a war zone. We don’t know what we’re doing well enough to really survive an attack like that.”

“But we _did_ survive!”

“Only through sheer luck. If the other squads hadn’t arrived and slowed the trolls, we’d be dead. This war won’t last long. When it’s over, we can come back.”

Norwin sighed dejectedly. “What if we stay together in Lordaeron? Work and practice and learn on our own? You could lead us, and…”

“And what will King Terenas say to a new military force on his land? I know we were allowed to train because of some treaty between Terenas and Anasterian, but I don’t know where we were supposed to go after our training was done. There’s only so much I can teach you, and what we know isn’t deep enough to really teach the others.”

“This is it for this year?”

“It looks like it,” Nathanos sighed and looked at Norwin. “Look, nothing has been decided for sure. I talked to Sylvanas to try to change her mind. I understand her points, but I understand ours as well. Let’s worry about being back in Lordaeron when the decision is made.”

“Yeah, I guess now isn’t the time to worry. We can talk about this later. How was the broth?”

“Delicious and filling, though I would have preferred some solid meat.”

Norwin laughed. “Priest’s orders. I’ll make sure you get meat as soon as possible.”

Nathanos laughed. “Thanks for keeping me company while I ate. I think I’m going to need some rest now. We’ll get through this.”

“Thanks for the talk. Get some more rest and get better.”

Norwin took the tray and left the room. Nathanos’ face became serious as soon as the door closed.

 _“What_ is _going to happen to us?”_ he pondered as he laid hi head back on his pillow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another long chapter, but I just couldn't get a good ending point without adding more to it to keep some sort of flow going. I'm also adding another chapter to tie up some loose ends, again for flow reasons.
> 
> Also, I just realized that I started Preston as PrestoR, but wound up calling him PrestoN at some point, so I'm just going to stay with that.


	19. Decisions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The fate of the company is decided

Sylvanas was furious. Marris fought trolls at the Tor’Watha ruins weeks before this attack. Why weren’t there patrols watching the area for more trolls? Why hadn’t she learned of this in a report weeks ago? So much damage and spilled blood could have been avoided.

She stalked to Lieutenant Dawnrunner and demanded to speak to her now. They went to the Lieutenant’s office, people diving out of their way. Sylvanas slammed the door shut and spun to face Dawnrunner.

“Did Marris report trolls at the ruins?”

“He said he fought some there, yes. I figured it was just a couple of trolls who somehow snuck their way up here.”

“Did you send scouts to make sure it was just a ‘couple’ of trolls?”

“N-no, Ranger-General,” the lieutenant said dejectedly. “I figured the trolls would take their absence to mean that it wasn’t safe for them and would stay to the south.”

“Did Marris tell you he thought the trolls might use those ruins as a base to make attacks from?”

“Yes, he did, but what would a human know about tactics?”

“More than you, it would seem,” Sylvanas growled dangerously.

Dawnrunner hung her head in shame.

“Did you not have patrols in the woods around the Retreat?”

“No, Ranger-General. I thought we were safe up here.”

Sylvanas stood there, silent. Naya was a good ranger. She was a good administrator as well, which was why she was here. She made a mistake based upon centuries of racial distrust.

“I can’t afford to lose any Farstriders,” she said. “Consider this a warning. You were lucky the entire Retreat wasn’t razed.”

“I’ll do better.”

“I know you will.”

Sylvanas rose and left the room. This war was a nightmare. She couldn’t seem to face all the trolls at once. It was like a Darkmoon Faire game she once heard of, only the consequences were much more dire.

Nathanos had healed to the point where he could get up and walk around. Norwin was true to his word and served him roast beef as soon as the priests said he could have meat. The only way it would have been better was if his mother had made it. To build his strength back up, he often took walks to the infirmary to talk to the people there. They seemed happy to see him, though he still felt guilty about them being here.

The priests had exhausted themselves healing everyone. There were some wounds that they just couldn’t heal; some had eye patches over an eye, some were missing fingers or toes, and some had lost entire limbs. These people Nathanos felt the worst about. They weren’t going to be able to go back to the lives they knew, and they couldn’t become the fighters they had hoped to be.

Arathel brought him some hope for them; she talked about making fake arms and legs that would be imbued with magic to make them work as if they were the original limb. He knew she was doing this for Therese, who had taken a bad hit on her left arm that had shattered the bones and resulted in her losing half of that arm. When he first saw her, he had wrapped her in his arms and held her for a while, fighting back tears. She made a joke about not being able to use a bow anymore, but she could still wield a hammer.

He spent time with the other officers, too. Preston took over leading the company while Nathanos recovered. They would gather over lunch and discuss possibilities for the future. They discussed the possibility of continuing training as best they could in Lordaeron after seeking approval from King Terenas. They discussed the idea of banding together and forming an adventuring guild and developing their skills through adventuring. They also discussed just disbanding until the next year. There were a lot of decisions to make, but they couldn’t make one until they knew what the Quel’dorei were going to do.

Lastly, he spent time with Sylvanas analyzing the trolls’ movements and attacks. He agreed that the trolls probably sailed up the coast and settled into the ruins. Sylvanas had already called for troops to root them out, and the two of them worked out various strategies to handle the invaders.

“Let some of us join you. We need something to get our spirits up again and hitting the trolls will do that.”

“Nathanos, I know you want revenge, but you’re not ready for it. A lot of your company was severely wounded by the trolls. Including you. As it is, we still haven’t decided if we’re going to let any of you stay. You humans are stubborn; most of you want to stay. We can’t guarantee your safety and watching over you will take troops that are needed to fight trolls.”

“We could stay in Silvermoon. The trolls surely can’t reach us there.”

Sylvanas sighed and shook her head. “Out of the question. Most Quel’dorei want nothing to do with humans. Oh, they’ll tolerate humans for short amounts of time, but having humans actually armed and practicing right outside their walls will cause a riot.”

Nathanos slumped in defeat. He couldn’t think of a counterargument at the moment. He knew she was right. They should be sent to Lordaeron where they would be safe. Their continued presence was a drain on the elves’ resources.

_“So why am I fighting so hard to stay?”_

“What if the officers stayed and fought with you? They would be surrounded by Rangers who are more experienced and would get practical experience in fighting and moving through the woods. Practice is good, but they’d learn more from actual application. If you’re concerned about our safety, we could stay up here and patrol with the squads making sure those ruins stay empty.”

“Nathanos…” She paused, tilting her head, brows furrowed in thought. “That idea has some merit. It needs work though. Let me run it by squad leaders.”

“Thank you.”

Sylvanas brought out a chess board and pieces. “Have you ever played chess?”

Nathanos frowned looking at the oddly shaped pieces. “No. My father and I used to play checkers. Is it like checkers?”

“No. It’s more complicated and requires a bit more strategy. There are a couple of ways to play it. The way most people play it is to take as long as needed to figure out what move they want to make. There is another way which involves limiting the time allowed to move. You must keep working on your strategy as the other person is moving their piece. You must look ahead and see what your opponent is doing and what the possibilities are in a short time.”

“So how do you play?”

She spent the rest of the afternoon teaching him how to play chess.

Several days later, Nathanos called for an assembly of the company. A decision had been made regarding their fate.

“We were tested pretty hard. I’m proud of all of you for the fight you put up. I know that this was a big shock to all of us. We listened to the stories of the heroes when we were growing up and wanted to be like them. We found out that the stories left out the part about the pain, and blood, and terror. I know some of you are having second thoughts about all of this. You want to go home and not return. I won’t hold that against you. Not everyone is ready for fighting; not everyone can face death and continue performing.”

He hesitated not knowing exactly where he was going. He hated public speaking and wished Sylvanas was doing this. She wouldn’t do it; these were his people and his responsibility. They looked up at him expectantly wanting answers.

“I’m proud of you all. You were scared and confused and bleeding and facing death. You hurt the trolls despite all of that. You used your training and you made them think twice about attacking us. You made them run away and we’re all alive today.” They cheered at this and Nathanos gave them a few moments to settle back down. “Many of you were gravely wounded. Some of you lost body parts. We were all supposed to be safe here while we trained. We found out that we aren’t. The elves can’t send anyone here to make sure we’re safe; they need everyone fighting the trolls. They’ve decided to send you back to Lordaeron by ship. When this war is over, those of you who want to return for more training will be welcomed back.”

The company went wild. Some shook their heads and cried “No!” Some looked relieved. Nathanos let them blow off some steam before holding up his hands and getting them quiet again.

“The officers have been talking about this, and we’ve come up with several different options. One of them is to form an adventurer’s guild that will keep working on developing your skills and keeping you together. This guild would need to be set up under all laws of Lordaeron and would be legally acknowledged by the king. The Ranger General has several connections with people in Lordaeron who would be willing to work with you. Those of you studying magic might even be able to study at Dalaran.”

There were some happy faces in the crowd; apparently people liked this choice. It was the best of a bad situation; they would continue to train while being safe in Lordaeron. They would also be able to go after gnolls, kobolds, murlocs, and other dangerous creatures scattered throughout Lordaeron. There was one question that needed answering.

“Will you be leading us?”

Nathanos smiled sadly. “No. The officers have been asked to stay and work with the Farstriders to patrol this area for the rest of the summer. We haven’t discussed who is going and who is staying yet. We’ll have those details later. When the summer’s done I have duties at my family’s farm. I’ll stop in when I can, though. The healers want to make sure all of you are healthy for the trip, so you won’t be leaving until next week. Lieutenants and sergeants, join me in my room, please.”

As the company stood, Nathanos saluted them all. He felt sad; he had grown to like these people who pushed themselves to learn a lot in a short amount of time. They did well in a bad situation, and they came through it. He was proud of them.

Later in his room, he sat with all ten of his officers. They were relaxed and eating their dinner, though the space was slightly cramped. They told stories of the past year and a half and got to know each other better. After a while, Nathanos stood up.

“It’s time that we make some hard decisions. Who wants to go first?”

Therese stood up. “I can’t really fight anymore. This new arm is great and all, but it’s no use for fighting. I want to say that fighting beside all of you was an honor, but I need to move on.” She paused to wipe a tear away. “I’m going to be staying here learning blacksmithing from Arathel. Eventually I’ll join the guild and supply you with arms and armor.”

“Thank you, Therese. You were great with a bow. I’m sure you’ll be great with a hammer. Norwin, how about you?”

Norwin inhaled deeply. “I’ve been giving this a lot of thought. I like fighting with you guys, and that fight with the trolls didn’t scare me off, despite…” his hand rubbed at the scar that ran across his cheek and nose. “But I’ve kinda formed a bond with the cooks of the company and –”

“Is it the blonde or the redhead?” interjected Anselme. Norwin turned a bright shade of red as everyone laughed.

“Probably both,” Kerwin answered and everyone including Norwin laughed harder.

“She’s the redhead, and her name’s Lyrah. The blond is very available, though and her name is Beate.” Norwin looked bashful and his black hair fell over his ice blue eyes. “Yeah, she’s part of the reason I’m going to go back and help get this guild going.”

Nathanos smiled. “Good for you. I hope things work out for you, but I’m going to miss your cooking. Who’s going to cook the fish I catch?”

“You’ll have to learn how to cook them yourself. It’s about time you got off your butt and actually did something.”

The entire group laughed loudly at that, and they all toasted Norwin. Nathanos asked the next officer their decision, and then the next officer until only Anselme and Preston were left.

“I remember a year ago you asked us why we were here. Well, it wasn’t so much asking as yelling at us,” he said as he chuckled. “I guess we deserved it. You knew we wanted to be heroes. You knew we wanted people to tell stories about our exploits, but we didn’t want to work for it. You woke something up in me and made me take a hard look at myself. I said then that I didn’t want to be a farmer, but I said that because farming is hard work. I thought being an adventurer would be easy money, but you showed me it wasn’t. I still don’t want to be a farmer, but I’m willing to put in the hard work to be something else. I’m going to stay and fight some trolls and learn what the elves are willing to teach me.”

Nathanos smiled at him and nodded. “Preston, you’re last. Are you going or staying?”

Preston looked conflicted. “Last year I fought against everything and everyone. I wanted people to notice me but wasn’t ready to do what it took. I blamed everyone else for my failures. It didn’t help that a blonde caught my eye, but she didn’t even notice me. I saw you,” he pointed at Nathanos “and saw you rise above us and get a room inside the Enclave and I hated you for it. I didn’t want to see all the hard work you put in. I told myself that you were sucking up to the elves and I hated you even more for it.” He paused and took a long drink from his cup.

“Then we went on that wilderness exercise. You just ignored me and let me do what I wanted. I wound up leading half of the squad and found that I liked it. I led them for the wrong reasons, and I didn’t really know what I was doing, but people followed me. You beat me until I could see what was going on. Since then, I’ve worked to get better both as a leader and as a person. This mob we’re letting loose on Lordaeron is going to need a leader. I’d like to go with them and try to steer them out of trouble.”

“I made you my second in command for a reason. You’re better with people than I am. We’ll go over what’s needed to form a guild and all that in the coming week. For now, you have my blessings to be their leader.”

They stood, clasped hands and patted each other on the shoulder, then Nathanos grabbed his cup and raised it.

“To some of the best people I know! Many wishes for success to those who are leaving us. To those who are staying, I’m going to be on your ass every chance I get!”

They cheered and raised their cups, then drank deeply.

Preston then raised his cup.

“To the best asshole that ever existed. You brought us together and taught us more about ourselves than we ever would have figured out on our own.”

This was greeted with laughter and cheers and more drinking. They sat around for a few more hours drinking and sharing stories until fatigue combined with alcohol began to take its toll.

“This has been fun and enlightening, but we need sleep. We still have things to do here in the morning and none of us is going to be in any shape to do it. Preston, Norwin, Therese, Anselme please stay for a few minutes longer. The rest of you: I like you, but you need to go!”

The officers stumbled out drunkenly and wandered to their rooms. The four Nathanos asked to remain looked at him expectantly. Nathanos returned their looks.

“Almost a year ago you were put into a squad and I was made your leader. At the time, you were considered the dregs and I was an asshole that didn’t really want to deal with idiots.”

“Was an asshole?”

Nathanos laughed drunkenly. “OK, I still am an asshole. Now shut up and let me finish.” Everyone laughed. “We had to spend a whole week together. I’m surprised we didn’t kill each other. I think if we were actually competent, we would have killed each other.” More laughter. “Something happened in that week. The whole squad started to bond together and started to actually put forth the effort to improve themselves. There were only eleven people from last year who came back. Five of them were from that squad of underachievers. You. You put the time and effort to improve yourselves and be more than you were. I don’t say this often, but you’ve earned my respect. Two of us will be leading the new guild. Two of us will be joining the elves.” He turned to Therese and put his hands on her shoulders. “And one of us is going to become the best blacksmith ever. That’s pretty damn good for a bunch of losers. Now, get out of here so I can get some sleep.”

They rose unevenly and staggered out the door chuckling. As they filed out, someone said “Asshole.” Nathanos smiled and closed the door.


	20. Patrolling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tensions between elves and humans are rising and Nathanos struggles to keep calm.

Life with the Quel’dorei patrol was a change of pace. There were no soft beds to sleep in, nor hot baths to soak sore muscles in. Nathanos carried only what he needed to survive; the patrol lived off what they could find. He learned to eat grubs and ants when necessary. He also honed his abilities to move silently through the woods and learned to meld with the shadows to become invisible to all but the most observant opponent.

He was hidden watching a handful of trolls as they moved towards the ruins. The Quel’dorei had wiped the trolls from the ruins quickly; these were reinforcements that the patrols picked off each time they showed up. Nathanos slowly drew an arrow from his quiver, nocked it, and waited for the signal to fire. He carefully listened to the birds singing knowing that the “birds” were members of his patrol communicating with each other. He listened to the calls and knew the signal to attack was imminent; slowly he raised his bow, drew back the string, and aimed –

An arrow went flying early from the bushes just to his left and struck down a troll, alerting them to the ambush. Chaos erupted as trolls and elves fought fiercely. Nathanos loosed his arrow then pulled his axes free and joined the fray. He picked out a troll with green hair and a wicked looking scar down his face and attacked. The troll was half a body taller than he was, so he had to adjust his tactics. He started with attacks to the troll’s midsection, then moved lower to attack his legs. The troll followed, countering the attacks, moving lower and lower until he was eye to eye with Nathanos.

Nathanos flung one axe into the troll’s foot, grabbed one of the troll’s long tusks and pulled the troll’s face forward. As he stared into the green troll’s eyes, he grinned at it and sunk his other axe into the troll’s skull. The troll’s eyes rolled back into his head and he sank to the ground. Nathanos pulled his axe free, raised it once more and chopped the troll’s head off with a vicious swing.

He looked up from his foe, saw that the fight was over, and relaxed, then searched the dead troll for valuables, cleaned his weapons, and rejoined the patrol. There were angry looks and arguing amongst the elves; Nathanos knew this would not go well for him. Kelric, the patrol leader turned to face him; his face twisted in anger.

“Marris! You were to wait for the signal. You know what that was, don’t you?”

“Of course, I know what it was. I was waiting for it and didn’t shoot!”

“Travaren says the arrow came from your spot.”

“He’s an idiot and a liar.”

“Who do you think I’m going to believe? You or someone who was a Farstrider before your parents were old enough to breed?”

“It doesn’t matter,” Nathanos growled. “I know the truth.” He turned and started walking back to camp.

“I’m not done with you! The Captain will hear about this! She’ll send you back to that mudhole you came from!”

Nathanos turned and looked back at Kelric. “You make that sound like a threat.”

“Your kind don’t have what it takes to be a Farstrider! You are only here because Anasterian was playing politics!”

“It doesn’t matter what Anasterian was doing. I’m here. I’m killing trolls. Now I’m returning to camp.”

He heard some snickering from the patrol as he walked away.

Back at the camp he had some dinner and took the time to wash away some grime. He was sharpening his axes and making sure they were in good order when he heard his name.

“Marris! The Captain wants to see you. Now!”

He laid his weapons down and rose to go to the Captain’s tent. He saw a smug grin on Kelric’s face and heard whispered mockery from the other elves. He ignored it and kept walking to see Captain Bemir. When he arrived at her tent, he announced himself, waited for acknowledgement, and entered.

Like most Quel’dorei she was tall and lithe. Her hair was very pale blonde and shoulder length. The tent smelled of lavender and roses, which surprised Nathanos. Everything was neat and tidy, and Nathanos believed the captain would skin anyone who dared to upset that neatness.

“Marris, Farstrider Kelric said you fired before the signal to fire was given, ruining the ambush. Is this true?”

“No Ma’am.”

“Are you calling _Farstrider_ Kelric a liar?”

“No Ma’am. He’s just repeating what Ranger Travaren told him. The shot came from my left, which is where Travaren was.”

“I see,” she said icily. “You’re saying Ranger Travaren is lying to cover his screwup?”

“Yes, Ma’am. I am saying he’s lying.”

“I believe you. This isn’t the first time Travaren’s done something like this. To be honest, he doesn’t really belong in the Farstriders. He wants the Farstrider title for the prestige it will give him politically. His family is immensely powerful, not far below the Windrunners.”

“He’s done this before, and you’ve done nothing to get rid of him? Why not just make him a Farstrider and let him retire?”

“There are certain skills which must be performed at an acceptable level before anyone can be named Farstrider…”

“He’s allowed to endanger the patrol _every time they go out_ because of politics?”

There was silence as the Captain pondered what Marris just said. She had been warned by the Ranger-General that he was blunt, and he certainly was. The rest of the patrol would be upset if she sided with the human, though. She knew what was going on, just as he did. Ancient prejudices were coming to the surface and causing problems. It was one thing for the Quel’dorei to train a bunch of humans, but to let them join their patrols was unacceptable, especially when they were at war. The Ranger-General was insistent that these humans be placed among the patrols, so they had been. The other humans were getting the same crap that Marris was getting with varying results.

“I know they’ve been harassing you: tripping you, blaming you for every misfortune, and similar stuff. I don’t condone it,” she said, trying to deflect the conversation.

Nathanos looked at her with a scowl on his face. “You don’t condone it, but you don’t seem to be stopping it, either.”

Bemir’s face turned red with rage. “This patrol’s been together longer than you’ve been alive! It will remain together when you leave and will be together after you’ve died. I must concern myself with that reality; I have to command them and keep their trust through all of that.”

“So, you let them make the rules and jeopardize the patrol itself just so they can beat up on a human who is helping them? I’ve talked with the other humans. I know what’s going on. I also know that we’re busting our asses to cause as little disruption as possible. What happens when these…’pranks’…hurt someone?”

“That hasn’t happened yet, and I trust my Farstriders to not let it happen.”

Nathanos snorted derisively. “Do you trust the trolls to not let it happen, too? What about all the rocks, logs, and broken sticks in the forest? What about the humans? Do you trust that they won’t let it happen? How do you explain that you let a Farstrider kill a human that was _on their side,_ fighting with them, not against them. How do you explain that you were too busy playing Quel’dorei _politics_ to keep the patrols safe?”

“It isn’t that bad. Nobody’s going to get killed.”

“No? I’ve had my bowstring cut so that it would snap when I drew it. I’ve had armor straps damaged to the point where it wouldn’t hold. I’ve seen human weapons dulled and damaged to the point where they were dangerous to use. I’m sure the idea was to make it look like we’re so incompetent that we can’t even keep our gear in good condition. What happens when we use that gear in combat and it breaks? All of a sudden, the armor that is supposed to protect us slips due to a bad strap leaving an opening that will kill us. Or we attack a troll that’s attacking a Ranger and our weapon won’t cut through the troll’s armor.”

He paused to catch his breath and realized he was shaking with fury. They were learning so much so quickly, but were being held back by these moronic, prejudiced, pointy eared bastards. It was time all of this stopped.

“There have been times when we’ve had to miss going out on patrol because we had to get our gear repaired. That left the patrols short a soldier. I understand we’re not as good as you are; we haven’t had the years of experience working together with you moving through the forest and hunting trolls. We aren’t Quel’dorei. I know there are prejudices on both sides, but we have to work things out. It isn’t just the Ranger-General who wanted this; Anasterian and Terenas wanted it too.”

Bemir halted him with a gesture.

“How long have you been holding all this in? Why haven’t you come to me sooner?”

“Why should I? You elves don’t believe we can do anything right, and maybe we can’t, but we at least deserve the chance to show what we can do without being sabotaged.”

“You think I agree with all of this?”

“You haven’t lifted one finger to stop it because of _politics_. What am I to think?”

She was taken aback at this. She knew she needed to take action to stop this before things escalated, but the Quel’dorei involved came from powerful families. She silently cursed Sylvanas for putting her in this position.

“I’ll do what I can. I want you to stay in camp for the time being and not go on patrol.”

“I see. Punishing me for someone else’s screwup.”

“You’re dismissed. Go.”

Nathanos turned and went back to his tent, picked up his axes and saw that they had been dulled. He looked up at Kelric and Travaren with a scowl as he picked up his sharpening stone and started working on his axes. They looked at him for a moment and started laughing.

The next few weeks were tense. The humans were dejected and angry while the elves seemed bolstered by Nathanos’ grounding. Nothing really changed; the humans were blamed for everything bad that happened, and the sabotage continued. Tempers were starting to flare on both sides, and the Captain was starting to lose control.

For his part, Nathanos did his best to diffuse things. He kept his head down and helped with camp maintenance while the patrol he had been assigned to tried to rub his nose in the punishment. He advised the other humans to keep spare bowstrings with them, and to keep their weapons and armor close. He saw the Captain speak to some of the Quel’dorei, and they seemed to back off a bit. A few of the elves even made attempts to talk to the humans in a friendly manner, offering advice and telling stories. There were still troublemakers who did what they wanted, though.

Three weeks after his confrontation with Bemir, he was summoned to her tent. Once more he announced himself, then entered. The Captain was sitting at her field desk, a stack of papers in front of her. She was holding a letter with the broken blue seal of the Ranger-General affixed to it.

“I’ve been communicating with the Ranger-General since our last ‘discussion.’ She’s had some harsh words for me, and I clearly have some work to do. We both agree that it would be best to remove you humans from the patrols. The trolls have been scarce lately, and we think they’ve rethought their idea about attacking this area.”

“So, you’re sending us home because your people couldn’t behave themselves?” he asked angrily.

“Let me finish,” she replied curtly. “You’re to take your men to Farstrider Enclave where they will be reassigned with new squads. You have all learned a lot here and are ready for a more rigorous assignment. You’ll be placed with those who trained you, so the conflicts you had here should be reduced.”

Nathanos was surprised. “I see. When do we leave?”

“You’ll leave tomorrow. Go to the Lake and you’ll sail south to the Enclave.”

“Yes Ma’am. I –”

The sounds of a commotion interrupted him. There were cries coming from the camp about someone dead. Nathanos and Bemir looked at each other then ran outside. They saw a patrol returning to camp covered in blood and dirt. Nathanos looked closer; it was his former patrol group and they were carrying three bodies.

“What happened?” Bemir shouted. “Where’s Farstrider Kelric?”

Kelric approached with the help of two other patrol members. He was pale and shaken, a look of shock on his face. His right leg was gravely wounded and trailed behind him. The two carrying him were also wounded, as were the rest of the patrol.

Nathanos called for healers as Bemir asked Kelric what had happened.

“Ma’am, we saw some trolls and set up an ambush. There were a few more trolls than us, but nothing we couldn’t handle. We’ve faced worse odds. The trolls were walking into the ambush without any idea we were there.” He closed his eyes and winced as a healer examined his leg. “Travaren fired before they were in position and alerted them to the ambush. One of their witch doctors saw him and cast a spell at him. I don’t think he even knew what hit him.” Kelric gestured at one of the bodies, severely burned by magic.

“What happened next?” Bemir’s voice had softened and was compassionate as she continued questioning him.

“It was complete chaos. Once Travaren fired and went down the entire squad attacked, but the trolls had managed to set up a defensive stance. We got them, but lost Talyndra and Ashryn, and most of the patrol were injured.” He looked anguished at the destruction and loss of life, and sobbed.

The healer made him drink something and he quickly went to sleep.

Nathanos turned to Bemir. “This is what happens when you let politics dictate how you run your troops. Too bad I wasn’t there. You could have blamed me for the entire mess,” he said with a large measure of attitude.

“Get out of my sight,” she hissed. “Pack your things and leave first thing in the morning. I don’t ever want to see you again!”

“Yes, Ma’am.”

Nathanos saluted her, turned, and went to tell the other humans they were returning to Farstrider Enclave.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Most of the elves were OK with the humans. There were some troublemakers, though, and they really caused problems for the humans. Nathanos wasn't very well liked by the elves in part because of his perceived relationship with Sylvanas and in part because he has an attitude.
> 
> I reworked part of this because a couple of readers pointed out a problem with the flow of the story. Hopefully it works better now.


	21. An Afternoon, Ruined

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sylvanas' afternoon started out well but quickly went downhill.

Sylvanas sighed wearily. The past month had been rough. Not only did she have to deal with the trolls, she had had to let Travaren’s family know about his death. His family and hers hadn’t been close, but they knew each other well enough to make the announcement tough. She posthumously raised him to the rank of Farstrider at his funeral and made sure his family knew he died a hero.

“ _Except he was anything_ but _a hero. I had him up there because it was easy: low combat, mostly parading around and looking good. He could do that. Even after we found those trolls, we got rid of most of them and left that company for mop up duty. This shouldn’t have happened. Except it did.”_

Except it did. There was a lot that wasn’t being said about what had happened that cost her three of her Farstriders. They told her he went in swinging to save another Farstrider and a witch doctor blasted him with magic. She knew that wasn’t right, but it was the story she told his family. Kelric had a very haunted look on his face rather than his usual smugness. He also avoided her during the funeral ceremonies. There was also the question of where Nathanos had been. That was the patrol he had been assigned to, yet he hadn’t been wounded at all. When asked about it, all he would say was that he wasn’t there due to “equipment problems.”

“ _He always takes care of his gear; he takes better care of it than he does himself,”_ she pondered. _“So what problems was he having that caused him to not be with his patrol? Or was there another reason he wasn’t injured? Did he panic and run away? No. He’s stubborn and running away isn’t in his character. What was going on there?”_

Captain Bemir had written to her a few weeks before the incident reporting tensions between the Quel’dorei and the humans. She didn’t say what the trouble was, though Sylvanas could guess. Not all Quel’dorei liked humans, and some, like Kelric, liked to make sure humans knew which was the superior race. Nathanos wouldn’t stand for that; not for long anyway. She sent orders to send the humans south to join up with her forces.

The humans were with her troops now, and they were surpassing expectations with no trouble, save for occasional hazing that was taken in stride. She had gone on patrol with each of them and, while they still had work to do, they performed better than she thought they would. They were fierce warriors who enjoyed taking on the bigger trolls and they had an impressive kill rate. Nathanos surpassed them, which was no surprise to her. He was better than a lot of her Rangers and was improving each day.

 _“Too bad he isn’t elven. He would make an excellent Ranger. Ah, but he wants to be a farmer instead. The others would make fine Rangers, too. We taught the humans magic, why not let them become Rangers?”_ She laughed at the idea. “ _Kael’thas would have a fit. So would a lot of the Farstriders, Lor’themar included. No, these humans will be sent south, to Lordaeron. They are already forming a guild and are developing their skills under Preston’s leadership.”_

A noise brought her out of her reverie. She turned and saw Lor’themar returning from his patrol. He was handsome in his green and brown armor. Every hair on his head was in place; she believed he would remove any hair that dared move from its place. She smiled at him and asked how his patrol went.

“We saw several trolls; they looked like scouts and didn’t last long. I don’t know what they’re up to, but there’s a lot of them out there.”

“Should we increase the patrols?”

“Perhaps. The trolls we ran into were just small groups of two or three. We seem to be running into more and more of them, though.” He looked at Sylvanas and scowled. “Why aren’t you in armor?”

“Because I’m in my tent in the middle of the camp,” she replied languidly.

“You know the threat of a troll attack is high,” he snorted. “You need to wear your armor at all times.”

“Even when we’re in bed together?” she asked coyly.

“Damn it Sylvanas! I’m serious. The trolls are up to something and until we figure out what and stop them, we need to be careful.”

“I know well enough what’s happening!” she snapped back at him. “I read reports from all of the patrols and know that the trolls are increasing their numbers,” “I don’t need you babysitting me.”

“I just don’t want to see you get hurt,” he said softly. He walked over and tenderly grasped her chin between thumb and forefinger, tilting her head up so he could look hee in the eyes. “I love you and my life would be over if anything happened to you.”

Sylvanas sighed. “I’m safe here in camp. If I’m going anywhere, I put my armor on and carry my weapons with me. I also have at least two other Farstriders with me, and you’re usually one of them. For now, let me relax in my tent without armor.”

“Very well, but I’m staying with you.”

“Not in that smelly armor, you’re not!” Sylvanas laughed.

“It doesn’t smell _that_ bad. Just the usual polish and oils.”

“And metal and sweat. Don’t forget the sweat,” she said, wrinkling her nose.

“It’s not as bad as human sweat. Have you taken a good look at their straps after a hard fight? Soaked through and smelling so bad I’m surprised they can sneak up on anything!”

“You do have a point. At least we’ve taught them to bathe more frequently.”

They both laughed and Lor’themar changed into clean clothes, putting his vambraces, greaves, and belt back on. He helped himself to some cheese, sausage, and an apple, then sat in one of the chairs at the small table in the tent. Sylvanas joined him at the table with a plate of her own.

“Which human was in your patrol this time?”

“Anselme. One of the ones from Nathanos’ group from last year.”

“Short, stocky, brown hair and eyes?”

“That’s him. That stockiness is all muscle. I think he could pick up a fallen tree by himself.”

“How did he do?”

“He’s mediocre with a bow. He can hit what he’s aiming for most of the time. Get him face to face, though, and he’s a terror. He killed five of the trolls we fought.”

“And how many did you kill?” Sylvanas asked with a smirk.

“That’s not important.”

“I see…answer the question. That’s an order,” she said mischievously.

“I don’t see why…”

Sylvanas raised an eyebrow. “Are you disobeying a direct order?”

Lor’themar sighed. “I killed four of them.”

“Only four,” she laughed. “You’re slipping. Maybe I should have Nathanos drill you to get your skills up.”

“No! Anything but that! Oh, the humiliation.” Lor’themar laughed and stuffed the last bits of the sausage into his mouth, then washed it down with a long sip of wine.

“I’ve been thinking about next year. What if we took this group and inserted them directly into the patrols for the summer?” Sylvanas asked, nibbling on a bit of cheese.

Lor’themar’s eyes went wide in surprise. “Are you trying to make _humans_ into Farstriders? Only Quel’dorei are allowed to be Farstriders.”

“I know that all too well. These humans are doing well. Keeping them in a camp shooting at targets isn’t what they need any more. There aren’t enough to form a human squad to go out and patrol on their own. They’re getting along with a lot of the Farstriders here, so putting them in with our squads shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Teaching them how to fight so they can go to Lordaeron is one thing,” he declared. “We’ve done that. It’s time to let them loose in _human_ lands.”

“They still have so much to learn! Once these trolls are out of our lands, we’ll be better able to teach them…”

“They can learn in their own lands!” He emphasized this by pounding a fist on the table.

“I didn’t realize just how much you hate them!”

He shook his head. “This isn’t hate. You’re enamored with the idea of allowing them into the Farstriders, especially Marris!”

“That’s what’s eating at you! You’re jealous of him! You have been ever since he beat you that one time.” She emphasized each point by jabbing a finger at him.

“Don’t be ridiculous! I’m better than him and could take him out if I wanted to.”

“Are you sure about that?” she hissed.

Lor’themar snorted. “Of course, I am. Would you like to watch us duel when he gets back?”

“Quit being a child. You grew out of such things ages ago.”

“Oh, I’m being a child? You’re the one who wants to throw away centuries of tradition by letting a human become a Farstrider.”

“I am not! I do _not_ want to make a human a Farstrider. Argh! This whole conversation is insane! I merely suggested bringing these humans back and letting them spend the summer with our patrols. That’s all. Anasterian would never allow a human into the Farstrider ranks. The Farstriders are the defensive force of Quel’thalas. While the help of the humans in some circumstances would be nice, that help would be from another force.”

“Let the humans return to their homeland and leave them there! I’m going to talk to Anasterian about ending this mistake.”

“You will do no such thing!” she hissed. “ _I_ am the Ranger-General. Any discussion about this matter with the King will be done by me! Is that clear?”

“ _I_ am your second. My opinion on the matter should be included. This needs to end!”

Both elves were standing, anger twisting both their features, their hands balled into fists. They were panting heavily; their jaws clenched tightly. Lor’themar broke the tension first.

“I’ll leave you for a while to regain your senses. The humans are working well for now because they’re temporary. In another few weeks, they’ll be going home. The thought of bringing them back every year is foolish and damaging to the morale of the Farstriders.”

He stormed out of the tent, not giving her the chance to get a last word in. Sylvanas was filled with fury.

“ _How_ dare _he? It is_ my _duty to make a decision about training the humans.”_ She paced back and forth. “ _This isn’t over! Where did he go? I need to finish this now!”_

Sylvanas stormed out of the tent and surveyed the camp. There was no sign of him.

“Where did he go?” she demanded.

“H-he went that way,” one of her Rangers pointed off into the woods.

Sylvanas stormed off to find her Ranger-Lord.

“ _I don’t know what’s gotten into him. These humans have been surpassing our expectations. Another year out in the field with the Farstriders and they will be excellent hunters.”_

She stormed through the forest, barely looking for tracks. She hadn’t been this angry in decades. This wasn’t a discussion that merited such a response, but it did trigger something inside her.

“ _I’ve worked so hard to get this training to work. I’ve had to deal with Farstriders who didn’t want to cooperate, and I’ve had to deal with politicians who insisted I make it work. Lor’themar has been a huge thorn in my side, though he has mostly been cooperative. We taught the humans magic, which has a more lasting legacy, and was a mistake. Letting humans train alongside Quel’dorei makes both races stronger.”_

The trees flew past her as she worked out her anger. She didn’t pay attention to where she was going; these were _her_ forests and she knew them intimately. After a while she stopped and let out a primal scream, putting all her anger and frustration into that scream. Once she stopped, she felt much calmer, and she looked around her.

She didn’t recognize the area she was in. She knew how to find where she was, but darkness was falling fast.

“ _This isn’t the time for nightfall,”_ she thought. Her ears picked out the sound of thunder rumbling in the distance. The trees were beginning to sway as the wind picked up; the leaves making a hissing sound as it blew through them. “ _Damn. I need to get back now!”_

She turned around and started to go back, then realized that the camp was in another direction. She stopped again and looked. In the darkening forest, landmarks were difficult to find. She hadn’t paid attention to where she was going, and she had made several turns as she ran through the woods. She stopped and looked around again.

There! She spotted a familiar landmark; a stone hill that jutted out of the ground like a giant’s fist. She knew where to go, but the sky opened just as she turned to head back.

The rain combined with the darkness that the storm brought made it impossible to see. Sylvanas started walking towards the Giant’s Fist, planning on hiding under a ledge until the storm passed. A flash of lightning lit the area giving her a brief glimpse of her target and then left her blind for a few moments as the darkness swallowed her again. She blinked her eyes rapidly to re-adjust them and continued walking towards the hill. The rain was so intense she couldn’t make out any other sounds. Her instincts told her something was wrong.

Another flash of lightning made her stop in her tracks.

Right in front of her was the green, long tusked face of a troll.


	22. Minn'da Told Me There'd be Days Like This

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sylvanas is saved and discussions ensue

Sylvanas instinctively reached for her swords and her heart sank as she realized they were in her tent, along with the armor Lor’themar had insisted she wear. She instead pulled her dagger from its sheath and took a defensive stand. If she was going to die, she was going to take as many of these damned long toothed bastards with her.

_“Minn’da always told me my temper would be my downfall. Looks like she was right.”_

Sylvanas dodged a thrust from the long blade of the troll’s spear and stepped toward the troll, slashing at its arm and drawing blood. She pulled her head back and caused the troll’s fist to miss as it tried to backhand her. Years of experience in combat alerted her to the presence of more trolls and she skittered backward, just out of the arc of a sword swing. She kicked out with a boot and felt a satisfying snap of bone as she shattered the knee of one of her assailants. It went down with a loud howl of pain.

“ _I wish this rain would at least let up,_ ” she thought to herself. _“At least then I’d be able to see a little better.”_

She grabbed the arm of another troll and bent it backwards, breaking the elbow, then struck it in the chest with her dagger. The troll was dead before it could yelp in pain. She jumped to the side to avoid another attack and her foot slipped on the mud, causing her to fall hard. A lightning strike allowed her to see the flash of light on metal and she rolled to the side of a spear thrust. She winced in pain as the edge sliced her skin, but that was better than the spear impaling her. She used her legs to trip a troll, bringing him crashing down beside her. She rolled on top of him, stabbed him in the throat, and continued her roll to the other side. She saw another spear impale the now dead troll and felt a sword slice her arm as she rolled.

She landed on her back, with a tree blocking her from rolling any further. She started to sit up to somersault through the trolls and hopefully get back to her feet when a large troll foot forced her back down. She saw the evil grin on its face as it raised its spear. The remaining trolls surrounded her in anticipation of her death.

“I’m goanna git me some elf ears, mon!”

Sylvanas glared defiantly at it and slashed at its leg with her dagger, opening a large gash. The troll howled in pain and pulled its foot off her chest, but another troll kicked her arm and she dropped her dagger. The first troll started raising his spear again, only to drop it as an arrow erupted from its throat. The other trolls watched their fellow fall, then saw another fall to another arrow shot through its back. They scattered as a third troll took an arrow to the shoulder and then another arrow a few inches over, through its heart.

“Lor’themar!” she gasped in relief as she scrambled to her feet, grabbing her dagger on the way up. They were still outnumbered, but the odds were shifting to their favor. She stabbed a troll as it moved past her, but it got an attack in on her and she got a deep gash in her leg. She looked to where Lor’themar was and saw a figure on top of the Giant’s Fist. The next flash of lightning revealed the shape of her savior: tall but stocky, not the lean form of Lor’themar. Nathanos had found her just in the nick of time. She saw him jump down and throw something in her direction. The object made a squelching sound as it hit, and she looked over at it. He brought her sword belt!

Nathanos was fighting a couple of trolls now, his axes whirling through the air in attack and defense. Trolls were converging on her as well, and she slashed her dagger through the air to drive them back.

“You’ll do a lot better if you pick up the damn swords and use them,” he yelled at her through the rain.

She agreed and dove for her weapons, pulling them from their scabbards and blocking two attacks before going on the offensive. While she was good at using a dagger, she was deadly wielding her swords. She blocked a sword, knocked it to the side and thrust her other sword forward into the gap that had been formed. That troll dropped as she turned to another troll. She swung for its head, but it blocked the blow. Her next swing was lower and grazed its abdomen, but its bone armor protected it. The third strike was a thrust to its chest, between the bones of its armor and she drew blood though the strike wasn’t deep. As that blow was sinking into the troll’s flesh, her other sword was opening the troll’s throat. The third troll decided his odds of survival were better if he ran. He only got a few steps before an axe sank deeply between its shoulder blades.

Sylvanas sighed deeply, trying to catch her breath. Her wounds stung sharply but she knew they weren’t fatal. She turned to Nathanos, who was retrieving his axe.

“Took you long enough to get here,” she said playfully.

“You’re rather hard to track,” he said dryly. “The first part of your trail was easy. You left a path a blind man could follow. The last half was the difficult part.”

“You don’t happen to have your cup on you? I could use a good drink of water but don’t have anything to catch the rain in.”

He dug into his knapsack and gave her his cup. She held it out in the downpour, filled it, then drank it down. She then repeated the process.

 _“She’s really thirsty,”_ he mused as he started to loot the bodies.

“Get what you can off these corpses fast. These woods are crawling with trolls.”

He looked in her direction when she didn’t respond and cursed. She was laying on the ground, unconscious. He ran to her and checked her breathing; she was still breathing, but her breaths were ragged and shallow. He looked at her wounds. Though they were bleeding, they weren’t serious enough to knock her out. He checked her wounds again. The flesh around the wounds seemed to be turning black. He checked the weapons of the trolls and saw the green sheen of poison on the spears.

 _“Damn. She needs help, but we can’t stay here.”_ He closed his eyes and calmed himself down. “ _OK. That’s the Giant’s Fist. There’s an emergency shelter not too far from here. I should be able to get there and treat her before it’s too late.”_

Acting quickly, he scooped up her weapons and got them secured, then carefully scooped her up, turned towards the shelter using the Fist as a guide, and ran.

Sylvanas opened her eyes and struggled to focus them. She had a horrible headache and her mouth and throat were dry. She tried to sit up and instantly regretted it, so she laid back down. Through her blurry vision she saw what she thought was a cave around her. There was a small fire providing light and sone heat, and she was wrapped in a blanket. She felt the sting of her wounds and felt the bandages that had been carefully placed over them.

 _“Nathanos must have brought me to the nearest emergency shelter,”_ she thought to herself. “ _Where is he?”_ she asked herself while looking around.

Her ears caught the sound of someone approaching stealthily and she reached for her weapons, only to find they weren’t in reach. She watched the entrance with trepidation, then relaxed as Nathanos entered the shelter.

“Oh, good. You decided to _not_ die,” he drawled sarcastically as he set something down and put more wood on the fire.

“It’ll take more than a couple of trolls to kill me.”

“It almost took the poison on their spears to do it. You were lucky I had some anti-toxin in my kit. Now I have to go spider hunting again so I can make more.”

“It will be good practice for you.”

“Damn it, Sylvanas! What were you _thinking_? _You_ of all people know these woods are crawling with trolls. You’ve seen the reports. Hell, you’ve seen the trolls before this. Yet you decide to go for a stroll through the woods without weapons or even armor! What. Were. You. Thinking?”

“You came after me by yourself. You tell me what were _you_ thinking?”

“I’m expendable. You’re not. I saw you storm off and figured you were just going into the woods for a few minutes. When I saw you left without weapons or armor, I decided to bring your weapons to you. Turned out to be more of a favor than I thought it would be.” He put a pot of water on the fire to let it heat up,

“You were concerned for my safety. I’m flattered.”

“Damn it, I’m serious. Who leads the Farstriders if you get killed taking a stroll through troll infested woods?”

“Right now, Lor’themar would since he’s Ranger Lord. Eventually, a new Ranger-General would be appointed,” she said matter-of-factly.

“Do you not care about living? About those who love you? Your family? Lor’themar? You have a whole life ahead of you. Running off into the woods unarmed and unarmored while trolls are all over the place was just plain stupid!”

Sylvanas felt as if she had been slapped by Nathanos’ words. She gritted her teeth and remained silent.

_“He’s right. I was stupid, but I’ll be damned if I’m going to admit that to him.”_

“I was looking for Lor’themar. We had a disagreement and he went storming off. I went to follow him but couldn’t find him.”

“ _You_ couldn’t find him? First you go running off into the forest without arms or armor, then you lose your Ranger Lord, then you get ambushed and almost killed by trolls. Who are you and what have you done with Ranger-General Sylvanas Windrunner?”

She scowled. “Very funny. Perhaps you should join a minstrel show and make people laugh.”

“I’d be horrible at it. If you’re not going to tell me what happened other than you had a lover’s spat, fine.”

He took off his soaked shirt and set it on a makeshift rack near the fire so it could dry. Sylvanas saw her own clothes on the rack as well, though they looked dry. Nathanos sat and took off his boots and set them next to hers by the fire, then wrapped a blanket around his waist, faced away from her, and slid his pants off.

“You got to see me naked,” Sylvanas said. “It would only be fair for you to let me see you naked,” she said playfully.

“Had you been awake you could have undressed and tended your wounds yourself. You needed to get out of your wet clothes and get warm; I needed to bandage your wounds and neutralize the poison.”

He pulled the pot of warm water off the fire, poured some in a mug and added a small bag with herbs in it, and set it aside to steep. He repeated the actions with a second mug, then put some jerky into the pot of water. After a few minutes he handed her the first mug, stirring the contents with a stick. Sylvanas struggled to sit, leaning against the cave wall weakly, and sipped the tea. It warmed her all the way down and she felt better.

“It wasn’t a lover’s spat,” she declared.

“What?”

“It wasn’t a lover’s spat. We were arguing about the future of your training here in Quel’thalas. Lor’themar thinks you’ve been trained enough and should go back to your homes after this year.”

“He’s right.”

Sylvanas looked at him sharply. “You agree with him?”

“Yes, I do. Don’t get me wrong, we’ve all learned a lot and I know we still have a lot to learn, but we _are_ a burden to you. There are also a lot of Quel’dorei who don’t want us around. We were doing better than some of the Rangers in the patrols up north, and they couldn’t stand that.”

“What happened up there?” she asked.

“They sabotaged our gear, blamed us for their screwups, and did all they could to make us look bad. Bemir ordered me to stay in camp after Travaren shot early and alerted some trolls to our ambush, then blamed me for it.”

Sylvanas frowned. “I didn’t know. You humans have gotten along with the Quel’dorei at the Enclave and the Retreat, I figured you’d do the same with the others.”

“The Quel’dorei who were teaching us volunteered to do so. They were willing to tolerate being around humans. Not all of the Quel’dorei under Bemir’s command or even at the Retreat were as understanding.”

Sylvanas hung her head. “I should have seen this long ago. I know how the Quel’dorei feel about outsiders. I –”

“You were busy trying to get this off the ground last year, and this year you’ve been busy with trolls. Only a few acted on their prejudices. The rest will tell you they “didn’t condone” those actions, as Bemir put it. Of course, like Bemir, they did nothing to stop it either.”

“I would have stopped it if –”

“I don’t lump you in with them.” He interrupted. “Most of the Quel’dorei at the Enclave were tolerant of us, perhaps because we were so green then that we didn’t threaten them. There were a few that didn’t want us – me in particular – to be there, but they left us alone. When we went to the Retreat, you weren’t there; you were busy down here. Unless someone told you about it, you didn’t know.”

Sylvanas finished her tea and set the cup aside. This was an issue that she couldn’t solve. All she could do was start the process and get some Quel’dorei interacting with the humans. They would have to break the walls down and spread word to their people. In time, things might improve.

“I think a two-year program would be best,” he declared as he poured some broth into Sylvanas’ cup and handed it to her. “After that, they can join guilds, or the army, or go wherever they want. I heard from Preston the other day. He got the charter for their guild, and they’re getting it set up. They want to buy some land and build a guild house. I know the others want to join the guild. I’ll be going back to my family.”

“Why did you come here in the first place? You’re a farmer, not a fighter, or so you say.”

Nathanos sat for a while drinking his broth thinking how best to answer her question. She had done so much for him, taking him under her wing and teaching him above and beyond what he had originally expected to learn. The least he could do was to let her know the truth.

“Two years ago, I was betrothed to a beautiful woman. She had long, silken, auburn hair, hazel eyes that I could have spent the rest of my life looking into, soft skin, and just a hint of freckles that I used to tease her about. We were so happy together and looked forward to spending the rest of our lives together.”

He paused and took a long sip of the broth. He was a very private person and didn’t like to share his past with others. Especially this.

“There are some gnolls that live on the western side of the Thondroril river that sometimes come over and raid our farm. They’ll take some livestock and some of the crops. We usually chase them off and accept the losses. That year they weren’t just satisfied with the crops and livestock. Alayna was walking from her family’s farm to spend some time with me. She never arrived.”

For several long moments, the only sound in the cave was the crackling of the fire. Nathanos was shaking and trying to contain his emotions. When he continued, his voice was small and shaking.

“We found parts of her body to the west of our farm. Her…her clothes were torn to shreds, her things scattered. Did you know gnolls eat humans?”

Sylvanas nodded her head sadly, unable to find words to say.

“I went to the nearest garrison at Crown Guard Tower, but they just told me I was on my own. They said I should be glad the gnolls didn’t kill us all.” Tears ran down his face. “What good is an army outpost if they won’t do anything to protect the citizens of the kingdom?” he asked, his voice full of anguish.

“You want revenge.”

Nathanos merely nodded.

Sylvanas sighed. “You can’t attack them alone. That’s suicide.”

“I know. I intend on taking a lot of them with me, though, and then I’ll be with Alayna in the Shadowlands.”

“What about your parents? How do you think they’ll feel when you die?”

Nathanos hung his head and said nothing.

“You just yelled at me for nearly getting killed by trolls, but you think you can go, kill some gnolls and die, and not consider the consequences.”

“I should just let them get away with this?”

“Of course not. You’ve met a lot of people who would help you. Hire the new guild. They’ll need money to be able to buy land and build a guild house. Get word to me and I will join you. We will wipe those gnolls from Lordaeron.”

A small smile crept across Nathanos’ face. “Thank you.”

Sylvanas returned the smile. “You’re welcome. We should be getting back to camp. They’ll be wondering where we are.”

“It’s nighttime. I don’t recommend going out right now. We’re safe and dry right now, we should stay here for the night and go back when it’s light out.”

“Nighttime! I was out much longer than I thought.”

“Yes. That was a nasty poison. After I took care of you, I went back and obscured our tracks as much as I could. I saw a couple of trolls, but they didn’t see me. By the time I got back my clothes were soaked through and the sun had gone down.”

“Very well, then. We’ll go back in the morning. Are you comfortable? Is there anything I can get you before I settle in?”

“I’m fine. Sore, but that’s to be expected. I’ll be awake for a while, so you go ahead and get some sleep.”

“Alright. If you hear anything, wake me.”

With that, he curled up on his cot and quickly fell asleep.

Sylvanas watched him for a while as the fire burned.

“ _He’s a lot more complex than I thought a human could be. He’s certainly not the total asshole I thought he was. I could actually come to like him.”_


	23. Finishing Business

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nathanos and Sylvanas return to camp and deal with Lor'themar, and they figure out a way to finish the war with the trolls.

They left for camp the following morning, moving stealthily through the forest. Sylvanas watched her pupil as he moved and was proud of the fact that she didn’t need to correct anything. He had come far from when he first caught his attention.

_“I need to work with him to develop strategies to defeat these trolls once and for all. He has a good mind for strategy. Too bad he has his mind set on being a farmer.”_

Heads turned when they entered camp. The storm had not been kind to the camp; there were broken branches all over, and a few tents that had been crushed. Quel’dorei and human alike were busy clearing the debris away. Lor’themar saw her and ran to her, his face covered in relief.

“I thought the trolls got you,” he said, hugging her tightly.

“I did run into some trolls just as Nathanos found me. We took care of them, then headed for the shelter by the Giant’s Fist to wait out the storm. By the time the storm eased up, it was dark out, so we decided to wait until morning. We both have some light wounds but are otherwise healthy.”

“Caemas, Fele’thar, we have need of your healing.” Lor’themar called as he turned to Nathanos. “I owe you my thanks for bringing the Ranger-General back.”

“You’re welcome, Ranger-Lord,” was all he said.

The pair were healed, and Sylvanas retreated to her tent, followed by Lor’themar. Once inside, she poured herself a much-needed glass of wine and wearily sank into the nearest chair.

“What really happened?” Lor’themar asked. “It’s too coincidental that Marris found you in time to save you from some trolls. Did you plan this with him?”

Sylvanas looked at him, startled. “What are you implying?”

“It’s terribly convenient that you go storming off into the forest without weapons or armor and he manages to show up in time for you to fight off trolls.”

“I went after _you._ In my anger, I went farther than I had intended. Marris returned from patrol, saw me leave without my weapons, grabbed them, and followed me. He’s a better tracker than you’re willing to believe.”

“You’re right. I don’t believe it. You spend a lot of time with him, even going off on multi-day trips. You fight tooth and nail to keep him around. What am I supposed to think?”

“You’re supposed to trust me! I have no interest in Marris as a lover! He’s my student, nothing more! He has a brilliant mind for tactics and wants to learn. That’s all.”

Sylvanas could feel tears start to roll down her cheeks. _“How_ dare _he? I love him and wouldn’t cheat on him, especially with a_ human. _Why is he insinuating I am?”_

“Get out!” she demanded. “I was up all night keeping watch and I need sleep.”

Lor’themar stood for a moment, then walked out of the tent and closed the tent flaps. He looked around and everyone was focused on clearing the camp except Marris. He was staring at Lor’themar with a scowl on his face and started heading toward Lor’themar. When he reached the elf, he suggested they go scouting for a while, then proceeded to walk to the woods. Lor’themar followed as the entire camp watched them leave.

“You do know that everyone can hear what you said in that tent, right? That’s canvas, not wood and plaster.”

Lor’themar blushed and remained silent until Nathanos stopped abruptly.

“I brought you out here to have a talk where we’re not going to be overheard. You elves love gossip, and the past two days have provided plenty of fuel for that gossip.”

“I didn’t come out here to be scolded by a _human,_ ” Lor’themar sneered.

“I don’t care. I’m going to speak my mind. Listen, or don’t. Your choice.”

Lor’themar stood there with a scowl on his face, his arms crossed, hands near the hilt of his sword. Nathanos remained calm, though he kept his hands near his axes.

“I don’t have any romantic interest in Sylvanas. I find her intelligent, witty, charming, and oh, so exceptionally beautiful, but I don’t have any feelings for her. I was with my patrol squad. We got back to camp just as you two were finishing up your spat. I stopped to get some water and a bite to eat when I saw her go storming into the forest after you.”

Lor’themar looked away for a moment, embarrassed, then returned his gaze back to the human who was taking a sip from his canteen.

“When I finished, I saw her weapons still in her tent. I grabbed them and ran after her. She’s hard to track even when she isn’t trying to cover her tracks. I found her surrounded by trolls at the Giant’s Fist just as that storm opened up. When we finished killing trolls, we headed to the shelter near there and stayed for the night. That’s all that happened.”

“Would she have lived if you hadn’t shown up?”

“No. She was badly outnumbered, though she took out a couple with just a dagger before I got there.”

“I suppose I should thank you, then.”

“You’re welcome, and you did thank me earlier.”

“Did she tell you what we were arguing about yesterday?” Lor’themar asked.

“Yes, and I agree with you. We’ve learned a lot here, but it’s time we moved on.”

“What? You don’t want to stay?” Lor’themar asked, his face betraying shock and surprise.

“What I want doesn’t matter. We can’t keep coming back here forever. We do still have a lot to learn, but there are other ways to learn it. Next year you’ll have new humans to train. I’ll be back with my parents, farming and chasing off anything that wants to try to steal from us.”

Lor’themar relaxed visibly. “I suppose we should get back. The rumors are going to be thick for a while.”

Nathanos shrugged. “It happens. Doesn’t bother me much.”

The next week was busy. Though the trolls hadn’t reached Thas’alah, they were pushing hard. They kept attacking in small groups, hitting their targets then vanishing. The Quel’dorei forces were chipping away at the trolls, but they needed a larger victory.

Nathanos stood over the map, looking at the recent troll strikes. There seemed to be three or four areas the trolls were attacking in, sometimes concurrently. He frowned, remembering something from earlier that summer. He looked closer at the map, looking for one type of symbol, but not finding it.

“Sylvanas, are there troll catacombs here, here, and here? I don’t see any marked on the map.”

Sylvanas frowned and looked at the areas he pointed at. “Yes, there are. We don’t have them on our maps because we stay out of them. They’re sacred to the trolls so the trolls don’t go in them.”

“Silvermoon is sacred ground to the trolls, too, and they’re itching to get back there. I’m guessing they’re hiding out in the catacombs, using them like we use the hidden shelters. We should scout those areas out.”

Sylvanas thought for a few minutes. The idea had merit, and they should have thought of it sooner. The trolls had spaced out their attacks to draw attention away from the catacombs, and the Quel’dorei had been reacting to the attacks rather than doing the attacking. She nodded in agreement.

“I agree. We’ll send scouts out to watch the catacombs. What then? If we attack one catacomb, they’ll know we’ve figured them out. We could possibly split our troops and attack two, but again, they’ll know that we’ve figured them out and can disappear into the forest.”

“I have an idea. We’ll flesh it out while the scouts check out the catacombs.”

The mage teleported back to camp, as she had done several times over the past few weeks to deliver a message to the Ranger-General. They had been watching the catacombs and reporting large troop movements, then teleporting several squads to intercept the trolls, whittling their numbers down. This was different, though.

“This is a larger force than past ones, Ranger-General. They’re heading east, possibly making a run for Zeb’Nowa. It looks like they’ve merged forces again. I’d suggest bringing everyone who can fight.”

“That large? What are they doing? Tucking tail and running? Tell the mages where we’re going. Lor’themar, get everyone ready. This looks like it’s going to be a big fight.”

The camp was instantly in chaos as squads armed themselves and formed up, ready for transport. Mages conferred and opened portals so the Quel’dorei could get to the battle site. The humans were confused about where to go until they were each assigned a group. Nathanos started heading toward the group he was assigned when Sylvanas called to him.

“Nathanos, I want you with my group. Hurry up.”

Once everyone was ready, the mages opened portals and the squads went through, led by Sylvanas and her squad. They emerged in the deep forest and moved out of the way so the next squad could come through. Within minutes, the Farstriders were at the site and ready for orders. The squad leaders gathered around Sylvanas and got their orders while a squad of scouts immediately went out to find the troll forces.

The scouts quickly returned with the exact location and direction the trolls were moving in, and the Quel’dorei quickly set up an ambush and waited. Shortly after everyone was hidden, the trolls came into view, trotting with their long, loping strides.

“ _There’s so many of them!”_ Sylvanas thought to herself. “ _How did they manage to regroup?_ ” She saw the end of the troll forces and made a sound like an angry squirrel chittering.

The air was full of elven arrows and the trolls fell before they knew what was happening. The trolls who had passed the ambush site turned at the sound of their brethren’s death screams and were quickly hit with more arrows. Many got their oval tiki faced shields up in time to block the arrows, but many more fell.

“Ambush!” yelled one of the trolls as he ducked behind his shield.

The trolls turned and quickly formed up, interlocking shields in front and overhead, leaving just enough room to stick their spears through. A few arrows made their way through the holes, but not enough to break the formation. For several long, terrifying moments, there was complete silence.

With all of the trolls facing toward the ambush zone, a couple of squads left their hiding places and attacked the unprotected rear, quickly killing those in back and causing panic just as attack forces hit the front of the formation, which was starting to fall apart. Snipers took advantage of the spaces and shot troll after troll.

Nathanos itched to use his axes, but Sylvanas kept him by her side shooting arrow after arrow at the trolls. They struck up a lighthearted contest to see who could kill the most trolls. Sylvanas also watched the combat for the ebb and flow of battle, asking both Nathanos and Lor’themar for their tactical suggestions.

The battle was long and brutal; the trolls fought desperately for their lives while the Quel’dorei fought for their homes. When the archers ran out of arrows, they joined the fray. Sylvanas and Lor’themar were death incarnate, wading through the trolls, their swords slicing deadly arcs that sent troll blood flying. Nathanos finally got to use his axes and the look in his eyes made many trolls turn to run before he chopped them down. In the end, the trolls quickly scattered to all directions with Quel’dorei right behind them. Again, Nathanos wanted to pursue the troll, but Sylvanas stopped him.

“You need to know how to deal with the aftermath,” she said grimly, pointing to the battlefield.

He looked to where she pointed. There were dead bodies everywhere, and the stench of blood and death filled his nose and mouth, making him gag. He had slaughtered livestock before and knew what the smell was, but this was so much _more_. Making things worse, he could hear the cries of the wounded and the dying as they asked for mercy and their loved ones, troll and elven voices full of pain and anguish combining. He slipped in the mud formed by gallons of blood and almost went down, but Lor’themar caught him.

“Healers heal those you can. Mages, open portals to the Enclave and Retreat to get the worst back to safety,” she said as she ran her sword through a wounded troll. Her words weren’t necessary, though, as the process of evacuating the wounded had already begun. Nathanos, seeing evidence of poison, pulled out his anti-toxin and applied it to those he could, then resumed putting the still living trolls out of their misery, many of them calling for someone named Bwonsamdi.

“ _Must be one of their leaders,”_ he mused. “ _No, I remember reading something about him. What was it…something to do with death…one of the troll gods or something? I’ll look it up when I have the chance.”_

The troll bodies were teleported to the catacombs, placed inside, and then the mages filled the catacombs with fire magics reducing everything inside to ash. The Quel’dorei bodies were carefully laid out with their weapons beside them, then teleported back to the Enclave to be washed and prepared for burial. The joy at finally breaking the trolls was muted by the loss of their fellow Farstriders. While many Farstriders were lost, the number was dwarfed by the number of trolls that died; that fact didn’t ease the pain of their losses.

Nathanos found all the humans and was relieved to see them all alive, though some were injured. He grinned at Anselme.

“You’re on your way to being a hero,” he said as he clapped the boy on his shoulder.

Anselme smiled sadly. “I guess I am. I’m not sure I want this, though.”

Nathanos nodded and pulled Anselme into a tight hug. “Let’s hope we never see anything like this ever again. Rescuing maidens and fighting monsters is one thing. This…”

Nathanos broke the hug and talked to the others, telling them they did well, then suggested they all go back to the Enclave and get drunk. They all agreed to that and made their way to the portal.


	24. Endings and Beginnings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The humans deal with their feelings after the battle, and the second year winds to a close.

Nathanos entered his room and looked around. He hadn’t been there since the trolls first invaded, but it still felt comfortable. He removed his armor and gave it a quick cleaning, getting the worst of the blood and gore off. Then he stripped and went to the bathroom to soak for a while. He felt dirty, beyond the blood that spattered his skin. During the battle he was filled with a bloodlust, but now the fire inside him was gone and he felt a stain on his soul.

This had been different. The fights before had been small groups and were over quickly. This battle had been a long, drawn out affair that had required different tactics at different parts of the fight. Several times he had almost died, and he looked at the scars of the wounds he had taken, still angry and red, and the dark purple-blue bruises that dotted his body. If he hadn’t been wearing armor, he would be dead. The worst part had been the screams of the dying that never stopped. He could still hear them even though those who made them had been dead for a while.

He lost track of time while trying to wash away the battle from his body. It felt as if he couldn’t get clean enough. He knew that the stain was in his mind and he didn’t have a way to clean that, not with soap and water, anyway. He hoped that copious amounts of alcohol would help with that. If not, then it would bring unconsciousness and that would be enough.

He was brought out of his contemplation by a knock at his door.

“ _How long have I been here?”_ he asked himself as he quickly rose from the water and pulled the plug sending the water down the drain. He grabbed a towel and wrapped it around his waist, then went to answer the door.

“I was still in the bath –”

He halted in surprise when he saw Sylvanas standing there.

“I can see that,” she drawled in amusement. “I seem to have a talent for showing up while you’re dressed only in a towel.”

“Yes, you do. I was expecting the others.”

“Do you often gather with them wearing towels? Is this a human custom?” she replied, laughing.

He blushed and laughed. “It will be if I stay here talking to you.”

He stood aside to let her in, then grabbed some pants and ducked back into the bathroom.

“How are you handling today’s events? I didn’t get a chance to talk to you after the battle,” she queried.

“I-I’m not sure. I’ve done a lot of killing before and it hasn’t bothered me like today has. I’ve been in slaughterhouses that weren’t as bad as that.”

“You’ve never been at war; never seen a real battlefield.”

“No,” he said in a small voice as he slipped a shirt over his head.

“War is a terrible thing. Big battles are horrible, as you found out. Each one leaves a mark on your soul that you’ll never get rid of.”

“Does it at least fade with time?”

“For most, yes. Some deal with it their entire lives.”

“How do you deal with it?”

Sylvanas chuckled and shook her head. “You’re looking for an easy way to deal with it. What works for me may not work for you. Each person is different. Some lose themselves in the bottle, some become angry and hostile. Some go insane. Then there are those who find a way to turn the negativity into something positive. Some can talk to others about their experiences and that gets it out. Some just need time alone. I try to avoid such large battles. I prefer to cut them down little by little. Draw smaller groups into the forest then make sure they don’t leave. Yes, I’m still killing and taking life, but not on the scale of a large battle, and I’ve convinced myself that I can live with that.”

Nathanos was silent as he mulled over what she said. He wasn’t one to spill his guts to people, though Sylvanas had managed to get him to open up a little. He didn’t feel like he was going insane, and he wasn’t one for drowning himself in alcohol, except for tonight. As horrible as he felt right now, he believed he’d be able to work it out. Sylvanas handed him a glass of wine and he gulped it down faster than he meant to. Sylvanas merely refilled his glass and he nodded to her in thanks.

A knock on the door broke the silence. Nathanos opened the door and let his remaining officers into the room.

“I see you’ve started without us,” joked Kerwin, though his voice was tense.

“I got tired of waiting. Come on in and join us.”

The other four seemed surprised at the presence of Sylvanas and looked at Nathanos questioningly.

“I’m just here talking with Nathanos about today. Nothing inappropriate, I assure you. Come in, relax, and get drunk.”

They were nervous at first, but they soon relaxed. Sylvanas guided the conversation at the beginning to remove the tension, but the others soon started their own topics of conversation. They discussed their pasts, and their hopes for the future. Kerwin drunkenly confessed his love for Therese and swore that one day she would be his wife, and they would have many children. There was much laughter and gentle teasing about that, and Kerwin took it all in stride. Eventually, curiosity about Sylvanas won out, and they asked questions about her.

“Where did you learn to fight like that,” asked Audric, one of the two women who had stayed. “I’ve never seen anything like that.”

“I learned to use a bow the moment I was strong enough to pull the string on it. Of course, I used a child’s bow, but It helped me build my strength and precision. My older sister used to make fun of me when I missed the target. Remember how you all were at the beginning of last summer? That’s how I was, believe it or not,” she laughed.

“You must have had a lot of practice,” Kerwin said.

“My mother insisted. When I was stronger, she introduced me to swords.”

“Was your mother a Farstrider, too?”

“She was the Ranger-General before me. She taught me all I know about being a Farstrider.”

“Has your family always led the Farstriders?” asked Anselme.

Sylvanas smiled. “Yes. The first Ranger-General was my ancestor, Talanas Windrunner, the first to wield Thas’dorah.”

“Thas’dorah? Is that a sword?”

“It’s a mighty bow that has been handed down from generation to generation. My mother wielded it, and now my sister, Alleria, uses it.”

“But if you’re Ranger-General, why don’t you have it?”

“Alleria is my older sister, so it went to her.”

“If she’s older, why isn’t she Ranger-General?”

“She didn’t want the position, so she’s Ranger-Captain and the title of Ranger-General fell to me.”

“How long have the Farstriders been around?”

“There were loosely organized groups of rangers who called themselves Farstriders during the Troll Wars. They eventually formed one organization to become the Farstriders we know roughly 500 years ago.”

They continued to talk about the Farstriders history, the history of the Windrunner family and various other topics, while drinking more and more. Sylvanas noted the wild look in some of their eyes and waited for the inevitable question.

“So are all large battles like today’s?”

“Some are much worse,” she said, closing her eyes for a moment. “You never really get used to them. War is a horrible thing, even though the bards tell you otherwise. The bravery and glory that they talk about come later, especially when telling the dead’s family about their death. During the battle itself you’re just focused on killing the enemy while staying alive.”

“W-who tells the family?” asked Kerwin.

“That task falls to me,” she said somberly. “I know all the Farstriders and their families personally. Tomorrow I’ll be going to the homes of the families and telling them the sad news.”

There was silence for a few minutes as each person digested what had just been said.

“I was so scared,” Anselme said shakily. “It wasn’t like before, when we attacked smaller groups.”

“No, it wasn’t. You get excited before the fight; you’re filled with strength, your perception of what’s going on is heightened, and you’re more focused. The short attacks were over before this feeling went away, but long battles keep going even after this feeling goes away. The horror of the battle sinks in while you’re still fighting for your life, and it feels as if it will only end when you die.”

“Yeah,” he said weakly while a tear ran down his cheek. His entire body trembled as he tried unsuccessfully to hold a sob in. Sylvanas went to him and held him in a tight embrace as he broke down completely. Nathanos looked down briefly, then back at the others who were also on the verge of a breakdown. He reached over and squeezed Kerwin’s shoulder and Kerwin returned the gesture and nodded, as if to say he was reasonably ok. Audric took a large gulp of her drink and stared into it before Riya wrapped an arm around her and the two women hugged each other tightly.

They all began talking at once, their emotions erupting from each of them in a torrent of fear, anger, and sadness. Sylvanas and Nathanos did their best to comfort and calm them. After several minutes the room quieted again. Kerwin pulled away from Sylvanas and sniffed loudly.

“Ah crap. I got snot all over your tunic,” he said while turning bright red.

Sylvanas chuckled. “Believe it or not, I’ve had much worse on my clothes today. A little snot is nothing.”

Nathanos threw a rag at him and he reached to wipe Sylvanas’ tunic. She quickly grabbed the rag.

“You’d better leave that to me,” she said with a kind smile and began wiping her chest.

Kerwin turned a deeper shade of red, and the entire room laughed. The mood became lighter, and everyone seemed as if the things that troubled them had passed. Sylvanas knew that the next few days would be rough, but these young humans would survive and possibly even thrive. They started talking about the day’s events and their close calls and biggest triumphs. Sylvanas told the group that she needed to leave since she had to be up early the next morning, then asked Nathanos to show her to the door. He got up and weaved his way to the door and she stepped into the hallway and turned to face him.

“Have you told them that they won’t be returning next year?” she asked in Thalassian.

“Not yet,” he replied. “I was going to tell them later tonight.”

“Wait a couple of days. I don’t want them to think we don’t want them back because of anything they did today,”

“Alright. I think they’ll understand, and with the guild forming in Lordaeron, I think it won’t be hard for them to transfer over to the guild.”

Sylvanas nodded, wished him a good night, and then left. Nathanos watched her leave, then returned to his room. He gazed at them fondly for a minute.

“ _I’m actually going to miss them,”_ he mused. “ _We’ve been through a lot since we came to Quel’thalas. Ah…I must be drunk to get this maudlin.”_

“What are you looking at with that stupid grin on your face?” Riya asked with a smirk on her face. “You look homesick or something.”

Nathanos grinned sheepishly. “I’m just a little too drunk and am trying to get my balance back,” he replied as he staggered back to his seat.

The group laughed at him, refilled his cup and continued to talk and drink until the sun started to rise. The others staggered back to their rooms and passed out. Nathanos undressed and laid down on his bed. The alcohol and the events from the previous day soon took their toll on him and he drifted off to sleep.

Things were quiet and somber for the week after the battle. The Farstriders lost many friends in the battle and spent a lot of time reminiscing about the good times they had. Sylvanas was scarcely seen at the Enclave, and when she was, she seemed tired and sad. The trolls had been beaten, but the cost had been high.

The summer was winding down and the remaining trolls were quickly hunted down. The five remaining humans spent a lot of time together, practicing their skills and making plans to return to Lordaeron. Nathanos talked about going back to his farm, as always. The others talked about going back to the guild and helping Preston and Norwin.

“I hate to admit it, but I’m going to miss you.”

“What do you mean? We’ll be back next spring.”

“No, Anselme. I have to take care of the farm, and you need to move on. You’ve all learned so much more than they planned and proved what humans can do fighting the trolls. If it were up to Sylvanas alone, we’d come back for more, but both Lor’themar and I agree that it’s time we move on and let the next humans step up.”

“But…we still have a lot to learn.”

“Yeah, but you can learn from others. We all have a lot to share, too. We can go to the guild and teach there. Sylvanas suggested maybe sending Farstriders to the guild to help teach us further.”

There were sad faces as everyone mulled over what Nathanos said. They had formed strong bonds over the past two summers and it was coming to an end. They knew they couldn’t become Farstriders, but deep down had hoped they could find a place with the elves. They had to find a new place in the world, and it was scary.

“I suppose going back to the guild wouldn’t be so bad,” Audric said. “We can go out adventuring, too. Maybe do some bounty hunting.”

“Yeah,” Anselme chimed in. “I hear there’s some good coin to be earned hunting monsters.”

“What about Therese?” inquired Kerwin.

“She’s still apprenticed to Arathel and will be for a while. She’ll be staying here for a while. I’m sure you’ll be allowed to visit,” Nathanos said.

“Do you suppose they’d send people to build the bathrooms for our guild house?” Riya asked.

Nathanos laughed. “I hope so. I’d love to get one put in at my parent’s farm. My mother would love hot baths.”

“When are they sending us away?”

“I’d imagine soon. The way back to Lordaeron is open again and it’s almost time for the harvest.”

“Will we travel together?”

“We can, at least as far as the road to Stratholme. If you want to come home with me, you can help with the harvest.”

They all chuckled and declined the offer.

The remaining days were busy as everyone packed for the trip home. Kerwin was allowed to travel to the Farstrider Retreat to spend time with Therese, then returned to the Enclave in time to leave for Lordaeron. On the day they were to leave Sylvanas held a ceremony.

“You five have helped us immensely teaching the other humans and then fighting the trolls. You all have learned so much over the last two summers, I’m proud of you and am glad to have been able to get to know you. Before turning you loose on Azeroth, we want to give you some parting gifts.”

They all received elven cloaks, and small pouches with several gold coins inside. Anselme received a beautiful sword, perfectly balanced and very deadly. Kerwin was given a beautiful bow and a quiver full of arrows. Audric received a sturdy maille hauberk that fit her perfectly, to replace the ill-fitting armor she had worn all summer. Riya was gifted a matching pair of daggers, her weapon of choice. Nathanos received a pair of axes.

“We hope that you will put these gifts to good use. We’re going to miss you but expect to hear great stories of your exploits. You’ve taught us a lot about our human neighbors to the south. Maybe our people will become closer in the future.”

They all knew that that future was a long way away, but they hoped that the ice had been broken. The humans were sad to be leaving for good but had their adventuring days to look forward to. They were loaned hawkstriders for the trip to the border and mounted the huge birds with some trepidation. Sylvanas mounted her bird and led the group westward, then south down the road to the border.

The level of excitement was high as the humans learned how to ride the birds. Nathanos grumbled while riding, stating over and over how he hated the birds; Sylvanas laughed every time he did. They stopped at midday for a quick lunch and a chance to stretch their legs. They looked around at the beautiful forest that they had risked their lives to save.

“It’s hard to believe that there was a war here. It’s so peaceful,” Audric said in hushed tones.

“Most of the fighting was further south. Still, nature moves on and quickly recovers from the wounds we create,” Sylvanas replied. “Would you mind spending one more day in Quel’thalas? I would like to show you something.”

The humans all agreed to stay one more day, although they would need to sleep on the ground in rough shelters. Sylvanas led them further south, then west. To the south was the most beautiful tree they had ever seen.

“This is what we were fighting to protect. This is Thas’alah, the Light of the Forest in your tongue. It’s said that she absorbed the energies of the Sunwell and provides us with eternal spring.”

“I’ve heard stories about world trees. Is this one of them?”

“No. This isn’t a world tree. We do call it the mother tree of Eversong Forest and it’s the oldest tree in the forest. We think the trolls were headed here to chop it down. Do you remember me telling you about Thas’dorah? It was crafted from a limb from this tree.”

They stood admiring the tree in silence for a few minutes, then realized that the area around them was growing dark. They quickly set up camp and ate dinner, then laid down and went to sleep. Sylvanas took care of the hawkstriders and tethered them for the night, then laid down in her shelter, gazing at the tree until she also fell asleep.

In the morning, they cleaned up their camp, learned how to saddle their hawkstriders and rode for the gates. By mid-morning they arrived at the gates and dismounted. There was sadness in their faces; this part of their young lives was ending. They thanked Sylvanas for the chance to learn more about the Farstriders and for all the rest that they had learned. They were each given one last gift: horses to ride home on. Nathanos got the same horse he rode the year before.

The other four loaded their gear onto the horses and mounted up, eager to get as far as they could before nightfall. Nathanos urged them to go on ahead; he’d catch up shortly. They laughed and rode south, saying farewell to Sylvanas one more time.

“Thank you for all you’ve done for me. I feel as if I’ve grown a lot over the past two summers.”

“It’s been my pleasure. You are an excellent student and would make an excellent hunter.”

“I’m a farmer, nothing more.”

“You limit yourself unnecessarily. I’ve seen many who wanted to be Rangers who weren’t as good as you. Your grasp of tactics is amazing.”

“I don’t get the choices you do.”

“In some ways you have more choices than I do. I don’t want to fight this out again. You would make an excellent hunter, but I understand your loyalty to your family. In a very real sense, we’re both constrained by our family’s expectations.”

Nathanos grunted in assent. “I’ve certainly enjoyed learning to be a hunter. If farming doesn’t work out, maybe I’ll try that.”

“I can’t see you failing at anything you set your mind to doing. You’ll be an excellent farmer. When you’re ready to take out those gnolls, send me a message and I’ll join you.”

“I’ll be sure to do that.” He hesitated as if he wanted to say more but changed his mind. “I have to get going. It’s a long road ahead and I want to get home in time to help with the harvest.”

“Always the farmer.”

“Always. Farewell until the next time we meet.” He hugged her fiercely, then mounted his horse and rode south to Lordaeron. He caught up with the others and they rode to Northpass Tower where they stopped for the night and had one last drink together before they split.

“ _I could get used to this,”_ he thought to himself. “ _Sitting with friends, sharing stories, running around outdoors. It would be a hard life, but so is farming.”_ He pictured himself running through the woods, keeping others safe from monsters and outlaws with the help of his friends. Later, sitting by a fire, like they were doing now, eating a meal that Norwin and his redhead had prepared. Later, going to bed with a lass. He could picture her: blonde hair, a well-muscled body, long ears… “ _Sylvanas? I guess I_ have _been spending too much time with her.”_ He shook his head, chuckled, and had another beer.

The next morning, they continued their ride south, reaching the road heading west that would take them to Stratholme around late morning. They reluctantly said their goodbyes, vowing to see each other again, and then parted ways. Nathanos sat and watched his friends as they headed toward Stratholme and the guild, and he thought about how things had changed from one year to the next.

“ _Last year I made this trip alone. I disdained companionship and called those four idiots, and I was comfortable in that loneliness. Now I sit and watch them leave with sadness in my heart, wanting to join them. It wouldn’t be too hard to stay with them for a while. Just for the winter to help them get the guild fully running. There isn’t much to do at the farm over winter, so I wouldn’t be missed.”_ His horse took a few steps down the road, as if it was reading his mind. Pictures of home flashed through his head: the barns and livestock, the fields of wheat, the sheep grazing in the pastures, Mother and Father…

He turned his horse south and started riding, listening to the sound of the wind through the leaves on the trees. He spotted the occasional deer, fox, and other wildlife in the fields, and hawks and falcons circling lazily in the sky. He enjoyed the warmth of the sun on his skin and inhaled deeply to immerse himself in the smell of dust and grasses that filled the air. The sound of buzzing drew his attention to the goldenrod along the side of the road, and the bees that were gathering their last food for the winter.

Up ahead he saw vultures circling over something on the side of the road. He sped up to see what it was. As he approached, he realized that it was a huge dog; one of the mastiffs that farmers often used to hunt with. She had been savagely attacked by several wolves, and had died of her wounds, but she had fought well. There were several dead wolves around her, many with their throats torn out. Nathanos dismounted and moved the wolf corpses away from the dog, then began piling large stones around the dog to form a burial cairn.

“You can feast on the wolves,” he shouted at the vultures. “She died bravely and deserves a proper – “

He stopped when he heard a sound. He cocked his head and listened. There! He heard the sound again: a faint whining coming from the bushes. He trotted over to the bushed and pushed them aside. There, in a small nest were two puppies: obviously belonging to the dead mastiff. She had died protecting her children, but now they were on their own. They looked at Nathanos and wagged their tails while growling and trying to be fierce. He reached down and picked them up. They were still young and not completely weaned yet, though they had tiny, needle sharp teeth. He took them over to his horse and pulled out some jerky from his rations, shredded it, then offered it to the pups. They sniffed it curiously, barked at it, then tried biting it. Once they realized it tasted good, they quickly ate it all, then drank the water Nathanos poured for them.

He let them play by the horse while he finished burying their mother. The vultures didn’t seem very happy about him taking away some of their food, but he didn’t care. She died defending her puppies and didn’t deserve to be carrion food. When he finished, he vowed that he would take care of her children, then scooped them up, put them in his saddle bags, mounted his horse and continued riding to Corin’s Crossing. At the inn he got some strange looks when he asked for some milk in a bowl, but he ignored them. The puppies quickly devoured the milk, then settled down for a nap while he ate his dinner.

Nathanos watched the puppies as they slept with a feeling of content in his heart. Something about them made him feel…complete, like they belonged in his life. They would be good to have around the farm to protect the livestock. As he settled into bed, they started whining again. He picked them up and brought them into bed with him, and they curled up against him and went back to sleep. As he drifted off to sleep, he had a smile on his face.

In the morning he took the puppies for a short walk so they could do their business in the grass, fed them some more milk, ate his own breakfast, then headed west toward home with the puppies nestled in one of his saddlebags. He often stopped to feed the pups and let them run. They followed him as he walked down the road, leading his horse. When the pups tired out, he put them back in the saddlebag and rode at a trot until they woke back up. He watched them play as he ate his lunch. The smaller of the pair had lighter colored fur, though it was still covered in dark puppy fur. He didn’t let his size interfere with his ferocity, though. He would brutally attack anything that got in his way, especially his brother.

“I’m going to call you Brutus,” Nathanos proclaimed while holding the puppy aloft. Brutus responded with a growl that wasn’t terrifying in the least and the most ferocious bark he could muster.

The other puppy was a little larger and had a reddish undercoat. While not as fierce as his brother, he did like to charge at things. Or attempt to charge at things, since he was rather clumsy and tripped and tumbled head over tail more often than not. He never let that stop him, though. He’d get back up, get his bearings, find something to attack, and charged again.

“ _He’s like a moose, charging everything clumsily.”_ Nathanos laughed. “That’s your name. Moose.”

He enjoyed his ride home. He saw the farmers out in their fields beginning the harvest and he found himself eager to get home and join in. There was good honest work in farming that left him tired and aching, but in a good way. He knew that he was helping people by providing them food and wool so they could live their lives. Most importantly, he knew that at the end of the day there would be a homecooked meal that Mother had lovingly made, and stories and songs after dinner in front of the fire, then a good night’s sleep before starting the routine all over. There was comfort in that routine, and he realized with a start just how much he missed it.

As he turned up the lane leading to his family’s farm, he heard a light, musical voice in his head say, “Always the farmer.”

“Always,” he replied out loud with a smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the end of this part of the story. There will be another story popping up in the near future telling more of the story.   
> Thank you for reading this, and your comments. It's been a lot of fun writing this, and I hope the second part is as much fun and is liked as much.
> 
> I wish Blizzard would get their story straight. According to WoWpedia, Sylvanas' mom either died in the Second War and Sylvanas took over as Ranger General then, she disappeared when the scourge attacked Quel'thalas and was presumed dead, or she was in Silvermoon with Quel'thalas was burned. Sylvanas was made Ranger General during the Second War, or she was already Ranger General before the Second War.
> 
> This makes doing research difficult, to say the least. Oh well, I'm writing what I'm writing, going on the "Sylvanas was Raner General before the Second War" timeline, and Blizzard be damned.

**Author's Note:**

> This story has been bouncing around in my head for a while. I remember reading somewhere that Silvermoon had a deal with Lordaeron to train some of their people as rangers. I figured most of the volunteers would be in their teens and looking to escape a boring life, while Nathanos was in his early 20s. I hope you enjoy it and feel free to post suggestions to make it better.


End file.
